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NEW   YORK: 

S.    COLMAN,  8    ASTOR    HOUSE 

MDCCCXL. 


I    - 


Entered  according  to  act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1839, 

BY    S.   G.   GOODRICH, 

In  the  Clerk's  Office  of  the  District  Court  of  Massachusetts. 


STEREOTYPED    BY 

GEO.   A.   &   J.   CURTIS, 

NEW-ENGLAND    TYPE    AND    STEREOTYPE    FOUNDRY, 
BOSTON. 


IP  IB  3S  IF  A©  So 


The  author  of  this  volume  is  under  great  obligations  to 
the  public,  for  the  kindness  with  which  his  humble  produc- 
tions, under  the  fiction  of  Peter  Parley,  have  been  received: 
they  have  had  a  much  larger  share  of  attention  than,  as 
literary  performances,  they  could  claim  ;  for  even  excellence 
in  this  species  of  composition — to  which  he  lays  no  claim — 
demands  less  of  genius  than  discipline. 

The  writer  for  children  must  make  children,  not  men,  his 
critics ;  he  must  be  indifferent  to  the  sneers  of  the  scholar, 
and  turn  his  back  upon  that  species  of  ambition  which  ani- 
mates the  common  arena  of  the  world.     He  must  descend 
r*     from  that  "exceeding  high  mountain"  to  which  the  tempter 
l?    would  elevate  him,  and  bidding  adieu  to  its  dazzling  land- 
-       scapes,  sit  down  in  humble  companionship  with  childhood — 

A 


11  PREFACE. 

and  that  too  under  a  conviction  that  "  of  such  is  the  king- 
dom of  heaven." 

Though  this  pursuit  is  regarded  as  a  humble,  and  often  a 
mean,  vocation,  yet  it  is  not  without  the  means  of  vindica- 
tion, even  in  the  light  of  philosophy.  If  a  man  can  look  to 
results,  and  be  satisfied  with  benefits  done  to  his  race,  he 
may  find  compensation  for  the  sacrifices  he  is  called  upon  to 
make,  in  devoting  his  life  to  the  moral  and  intellectual  cul- 
ture of  children.  These  open  a  field  of  prolific  soil,  which 
may  be  successfully  cultivated,  even  by  very  humble  abili- 
ties. The  oak  defies  the  efforts  of  a  giant  to  change  its 
form,  but  the  pigmy  may  shape  the  sapling  as  he  will. 
Genius  may  therefore  waste  a  life  in  vain  efforts  upon  hard- 
ened manhood,  while  youth,  yielding  to  the  slightest  touch, 
may  be  moulded,  in  hundreds  and  thousands,  by  a  far  infe- 
rior hand,  into  the  image  of  God.  It  may  seem  that  bene- 
fitting the  rising  generation  is  like  setting  out  trees  for 
posterity,  whose  fruit  or  shade  we  cannot  share ;  but  this 
suggestion  leaves  out  of  view  the  satisfaction  which  flows 
from  the  ever-springing  fountain  of  conscious  benevolence. 


PREFACE.  Ill 

How  far  such  views  may  have  influenced  the  writer  of 
these  pages,  cannot  be  of  the  slightest  consequence  to  the 
public ;  yet  he  may  be  permitted  to  say,  that  if  he  has 
missed  the  compensation  here  suggested,  he  feels  that  Peter 
Parley's  Tales  have  been  written  in  vain. 

In  England,  these  works  have  been  extensively  repub- 
lished, but  the  violated  contract  of  a  leading  publisher  has 
left  the  author  without  return.  Nor  is  this  the  only  source 
of  annoyance,  for  books  which  he  never  wrote  have  been 
palmed  upon  the  public,  with  the  name  of  Peter  Parley  in 
the  title-page ;  and  thus  he  is  made  responsible  for  works, 
some  of  which  are  sullied  with  passages  incompatible  alike 
with  good  manners  and  good  morals. 

But  while  these  foreign  pirates  have  pursued  their  system 
of  plunder,  the  author  has  the  satisfaction  to  know  that  his 
rights  have  been  generally  respected  in  his  own  country.  It 
is  true  that  "Parley's  Magazine"  has  been  four  years  con- 
tinued without  the  participation,  in  any  manner  whatever, 
of  the  subscriber ;  yet  it  came  into  the  hands  of  its  present 


IV  PREFACE. 

publishers  under  circumstances  which,  perhaps,  forbid  com- 
plaint on  his  part. 

In  taking  a  final  leave  of  the  public,  in  the  character 
of  Peter  Parley,  I  have  therefore  but  to  offer  my  grateful 
acknowledgments  to  my  countrymen,  and  to  say  one  word 
respecting  these  farewell  pages.  They  are  not  written  for 
infancy,  but  for  youth,  and  are  designed  to  make  the  argu- 
ments for  the  Christian  Religion,  accessible  to  those  who 
have  no  means  of  education  beyond  the  precincts  of  the 
fireside  and  the  common  school. 

Author  of  Peter  Parley's  Tales. 


CONTENTS 


PART  I. 

NATURAL  RELIGION. 


Page 


Chap.  I.  Curious  contrivance  by  which  the  ears  of  wheat  are  protected.  About 
the  seeds  of  peas,  beans,  and  cotton  ;  ingenious  means  by  which  they 
are  guarded.  About  other  seeds.  Great  design  in  the  care  taken  of 
seeds,  viz.  to  provide  food  for  animals  and  to  disseminate  and  per- 
petuate plants, 9 

Chap.  II.  Plants  do  not  think,  how  then  can  they  contrive  ?  They  do  not  con- 
trive, but  some  one  contrives  for  them.  Who  is  it?  Plants  prove 
the  existence  of  a  thinking,  designing,  contriving  Being,  infinitely 
superior  to  man  in  wisdom  and  power,  whom  we  call  God.  The 
ends  answered  by  seeds,  the  supplying  of  food  and  the  perpetuation 
of  the  races  of  plants,  prove  the  existence  of  a  designing  Being — a 
God, 14 

Chap.  III.   The  Wild  Daisy, 18 

Chap.  IV.  Man  cannot  make  a  seed,  and  if  he  could  it  would  not  grow.  God 
only  can  make  a  thing  grow.  The  artificial  bird.  Use  of  the  word 
Nature.  Its  true  meaning.  No  such  thing  as  nature  acting  and 
producing,  independent  of  God, 20 

Chap.  V.  The  partridge's  feather.  Who  made  it  ?  Man  cannot  make  a  feather, 
much  less  a  wing.  Story  of  a  man  who  tried  to  make  wings  and 
fly.  Who  makes  eggs  ?  Who  makes  birds  ?  Birds  do  not  make 
eggs,  or  birds.  Man  cannot  make  eggs,  or  birds.  The  existence  of 
birds  proves  a  God, 26 

Chap.  VI.  Birds  produce  eggs,  but  do  not  make  them.  Ingenuity  displayed  in 
the  construction  of  an  egg.  It  surpasses  the  ingenuity  of  man.  Thus 
eggs  prove  the  existence  of  God, 28 


VI  CONTENTS. 

Page 
Chap.  VII.    Every  thing   proves  the   existence  of  God.      About  Insects.     The 

housefly.     Its  structure.     This  proves  clearly  the  existence  of  God. 

All  nature  a  book,  showing  forth  the  existence  of  God,    ...  32 

Chap.  VIII.  Of  fishes.  Description  of  the  perch.  Wonderful  ingenuity  dis- 
played in  the  structure  of  fishes.  Fishes  prove  the  existence  of  a 
God, 36 

Chap.  IX.  About  reptiles.  The  frog,  lizards,  alligator,  crocodile.  The  leviathan 
of  the  Scriptures.  Other  reptiles.  None  but  a  superior  being  could 
have  made  them, 37 

Chap.  X.  The  existence  of  a  Deity  proved  by  the  structure  of  quadrupeds.  The 
elephant.  His  frame.  His  tusks— his  short  neck — and  the  proboscis 
to  compensate  the  defect.  Ingenuity  of  the  proboscis.  Man  could 
not  make  elephants.  None  but  a  Superior  Being  could  create 
them, 41. 

Chap.  XI.    Existence  of  God  proved  by  the  structure  of  man's  body,  .        .  46 

Chap.  XII.    Proofs  of  the  existence  of  God  from  the  marks  of  arrangement  and 

design  in  the  structure  of  the  earth, 48 

Chap.  XIII.   Proofs  of  a  Deity  afforded  by  Astronomy, 52 

Chap.  XIV.    God  made  all  things, 54 

Chap.  XV.   Review  of  the  argument.     Existence  of  God  proved.     His  personality 

proved.     A  doubt  started, 56 

Chap.  XVI.    The   unity  of  God   proved   from  the   unity  of  design   observable 

throughout  the  universe, 60 

Chap.  XVII.   Skill  of  the  Creator  illustrated  from  the  mechanical  structure  of 

the  human  body:  the  heart  and  spine;  the  circulation  of  the  blood,  .       65 

Chap.  XVIII.    The  wisdom  of  the  Creator  shown  by  the  peculiar  and  yet  suitable 

organization  of  certain  animals, 70 

Chap.  XIX.  Wisdom  of  the  Deity  proved  from  the  preparations  beforehand  for 
the  wants  of  animals,  found  in  the  contrivances  of  Nature  :  also  by 
the  fitness  and  adaptation  of  some  parts  of  animals  to  other  parts,      .      78 

Chap.  XX.    Wisdom  of  the  Creator  proved  by  the  means  adopted  to  compensate 

for  defects  in  animal  organization, 82 

Chap.  XXI.   The  argument  continued,  85 

Chap.  XXII.   Proofs  of  the  Wisdom  of  the  Creator  furnished  by  the  relation  of 

the  structure  of  animals  to  inanimate  Nature,  ....  86 

Chap.  XXIII.  The  wisdom  and  power  of  God  proved  from  the  instinct  of  ani- 
mals,       90 

Chap.  XXrV.   Instinct  continued.     Quadrupeds.    The  Beaver.   Ants,        .        .  97 


CONTENTS.  Vll 

Page 

Chap.  XXV.   Instinct,— continued.     The  Honey-Bee, 107 

Chap.  XXVI.    Instinct  continued.     The  Spider.     Conclusion  of  this  topic,         .  121 
Chap.  XXVII.   Wisdom  and  power  of  God  proved  by  animal  life,  and  by  the 

mind  of  man, 130 

Chap.  XXVIII.   The  wisdom  and  power  of  God  displayed  by  the  sun,  moon,  and 

stars, 132 

Chap.  XXIX.    Wisdom  and  power  of  God,  as  seen  by  considering  him  as  the  Cre- 
ator and  Sustainer  of  all  things, 137 

Chap.  XXX.    Difficulties  removed, 142 

Chap.  XXXI.   The  benevolence  of  the  Deity,  displayed  by  the  happiness  of  his 

creatures, 146 

Chap.  XXXII.  Benevolence  of  the  Deity— Continued, 152 

Chap.  XXXIII.   Benevolence  of  the  Deity— Continued, 155 

Chap.  XXXIV.    Benevolence  of  the  Deity— Continued, 160 

Chap.  XXXV.    Difficulties  answered, .  166 

Chap.  XXXVI.   Difficulties— Continued, »        4        .  173 

Chap.  XXXVII.    Difficulties— Continued, .  177 

Chap.  XXXVIII.   Review  of  the  preceding  chapters,  183 


PART    II. 

REVEALED    RELIGION. 

Chap.  I.  The  works  of  Creation  adapted  to  fulfil  the  design  of  their  Creator. 
Man  is  an  immortal  being,  a  moral  being.  To  qualify  man  to  fulfil 
his  duty  as  such,  a  full  revelation  of  God's  will  as  to  man's  duty  and 
destiny,  seems  to  be  required.  Has  such  a  revelation  been  fur- 
nished?         186 

Chap.  II.  The  several  works  which  claim  to  be  revelations  from  God.  Mahomet 
and  the  Koran.  The  sacred  books  of  the  Hindoos.  Various  heathen 
creeds.     The  Bible, 196 

Chap.  III.    History  of  the  Bible, 200 

Chap.  IV.  The  various  kinds  of  proof  which  may  be  brought  to  show  the  authen- 
ticity of  the  Scriptures, 204 

Chap.  V.  The  New  Testament.  The  accounts  set  forth  by  the  Gospels.  The 
design  of  Christ's  mission  and  death  :  the  object  of  the  preaching  of 
his  Apostles.  The  period  of  these  events.  Political,  social,  and  re- 
ligious state  of  society  at  this  time, 205 


Vlll  CONTENTS. 

Page 

Chap.  VI.   Unbelief  of  the  Jewish  nation  in  Christ's  mission.     Unbelief  of  the 

ancient  heathen  nations.     Modern  infidelity.     The  Bible  to  be  tested 

likejother  books, 212 

Chap.  VII.    Testimony  of  Tacitus,  a  Roman  writer,  to  the  fact  that  Christ  died 

for  his  religion  ;  and  that  this  was  rapidly  extended  after  his  death,        215 
Chap.  VIII.    Christ's  religion  did  originate,  and  the  New-Testament  account  of 
its  origin  explains  its  rapid  extension.     Moreover,  there  is  no  other 
history  of  this  matter  set  up  by  heathen  writers ;  on  the  contrary, 
so  far  as  they  go,  they  confirm  it.     The  inference  in  favor  of  the  truth 

of  the  New  Testament  is  very  strong, 220 

Chap.  IX.  All  the  Christian  writers,  from  the  earliest  to  the  latest  times,  speak 
as  if  the  New-Testament  account  of  Christ  and  his  religion  was  the 

true  one,  and  the  only  one, 223 

Chap.  X.  Proofs  that  the  books  of  the  New  Testament  were  written  by  their  re- 
puted authors, 230 

Chap.  XI.  Internal  evidences  of  the  truth  of  the  New  Testament.  Candor  of  the 
writers.  Passages  unlikely  to  be  the  work  of  impostors.  Natural- 
ness of  some  passages,         241 

Chap.  XII.  Consistency  and  unity  of  the  character  of  Christ,  as  drawn  by  the 
several  Evangelists.  Harmony  of  the  Gospel  history,  in  dates, 
events  and  allusions  to  manners  and  customs,  with  other  histories,         246 

Chap.  XIII.    Morality  of  the  Gospel,       • 255 

Chap.  XIV.    The  purity  of  Christ's  character, 266 

Chap.  XV.    Miracles  of  Christ.     The  rapid  extension  of  his  religion.  Inferences,    .     273 

Chap.  XVI.   Prophecies  concerning  Christ, 281 

Chap.  XVII.    Review  of  the  arguments  respecting  the  New  Testament,        .        .     289 

Chap.  XVIII.   Inspiration  of  the  New-Testament  books, 294 

Chap.  XIX.   The  Old  Testament.     Its  inspiration.     Referred  to  by  Christ  and  his 

apostles  as  inspired.     Homer  compared  with  Isaiah,  .         .         .     296 

Chap.  XX.   The  prophet  Habakkuk, 303 

Chap.  XXI.      The    Old   Testament    continued.      Prophecies.      Babylon.      The 

Arabs.     Jews.     Other  prophecies, 305 

Chap.  XXII.    Review  of  the  argument  for  the  truth  and  inspiration  of  the  Old 

Testament, 309 

Chap.  XXIII.  The  Bible  then  is  true  :  it  has  approved  itself  to  the  minds  of 
millions,  as  a  divine  revelation ;  and  all  the  discoveries  of  modern 

science  but  confirm  its  veracity, 312 

Chap.  XXIV.    Difficulties  answered. — Conclusion, 315 

FAREWELL.  320 


PART     I. 

NATURAL    RELIGION 


Chapter  I. 

Curious  contrivance  by  which  the  ears  of  wheat  are  protected. 
About  the  seeds  of  peas,  beans  and  cotton  ;  ingenious  means  by  which 
they  are  guarded.  About  other  seeds.  Great  design  in  the  care 
taken  of  seeds;  viz.  to  provide  food  for  animals  and  to  disseminate  and 
perpetuate  plants. 

It  was  a  pleasant  day  in  May,  When  I 
chanced  to  be  passing  through  a  field  of  wheat 
with  my  two  young  friends,  Jane  and  James. 
The  wheat  was  already  grown  to  the  height  of 
several  inches,  and  the  heads  or  ears  were 
some  of  them  formed.  But  they  were  yet  too 
tender  to  be  exposed  to  the  cold  weather  of 
spring,  to  the  rain,  and  sun,  and  wind,  and 
therefore  the  leaves  were  gathered  over  the 
heads  of  the  ears  to  shelter  them. 

James,  who  is  an  inquisitive,  observing  boy, 
noticed  this,  and  called  my  attention  to  the 
fact.     Jane  came  up  and  observed  that  every 


10  NATURAL   RELIGION. 

stalk  seemed  to  wrap  up  the  head  of  wheat 
with  its  leaves,  taking  as  much  care  of  it  as  a 
mother  does  of  an  infant.  Upon  this  we  fell 
into  the  following  dialogue. 

James.  You  say  Mr.  Parley,  that  the  head 
of  wheat  is  too  tender  now  to  be  exposed  to 
the  weather,  and  therefore  the  leaves  wrap  it 
up,  as  blankets  are  put  around  an  infant  to 
keep  it  warm  and  comfortable  ;  and  you  say 
that  when  the  head  of  wheat  is  tough  enough 
to  bear  the  weather,  the  leaves  will  open  and 
expose  it  to  the  sun,  and  that  then  the  warm 
weather  will  ripen  it. 

Parley.  Yes,  I  did  say  so,  and  all  this  is 
true. 

James.  Then  it  seems  as  if  the  great  object 
of  the  wheat  stalk  was  to  take  care  of  the  head 
of  wheat,  and  ripen  it,  and  bring  it  to  perfec- 
tion. 

Parley.  Yes,  and  the  reason  of  this  is  obvi- 
ous. The  head  of  wheat  contains  the  seed, 
and  the  seed  are  what  the  stalks  shoot  from. 
Without  seeds,  wheat  cannot  be  produced.  In 
order  that  the  crop  of  wheat  should  continue 
and  increase,  wheat  seeds  must  be  produced 
and  multiplied.    Therefore  it  is  that  the  wheat 


parley's  farewell.  11 

stalks  take  so  much  care  of  the  heads:  it 
is  that  the  means  of  continuing  and  increas- 
ing the  crop  of  wheat  may  be  secured.  If 
the  tender  heads  of  wheat  were  not  thus 
protected,  they  would  be  blasted  by  early 
frosts,  or  by  the  rain  or  the  sun,  and  wheat  would 
cease  to  grow.  But  now,  by  the  care  taken 
of  its  head,  by  the  stalk,  it  increases,  and  be- 
comes food  for  man  and  for  birds  and  beasts. 

James.  And  is  it  the  same  with  rye  and 
oats  ? 

Parley.  Certainly,  and  with  many  other 
plants.  And  in  some  plants,  there  are  still 
more  ingenious  modes  resorted  to,  to  protect 
the  seeds.  Thus  the  seeds  of  peas  are  enclosed 
in  a  pod,  as  smooth  and  almost  as  tough  as 
parchment.  And  there  is  a  very  curious  con- 
trivance about  these  pea-pods,  which  seems  to 
me  very  interesting.  When  they  are  very 
young  and  tender,  they  are  sheltered  within 
the  flower,  and  this  is  so  shaped,  that  when  the 
wind  blows,  it  turns  its  back  to  it,  and  the 
young  pod  is  thus  kept  safe  from  the  blast. 

James.     This  is  more  and  more  wonderful. 

Parley.  But  it  is  not  all.  In  some  plants, 
as  in  beans,  the  seeds  are  enclosed  in  pods,  all 


12  NATURAL   RELIGION. 

lined  with  a  membrane  as  soft  as  silk.  In 
others,  as  in  cotton  plants,  the  seeds  are  em- 
bedded in  fine  wool,  and  are  thus  as  carefully 
provided  for,  as  the  children  of  the  richwho  sleep 
on  beds  of  down  !  And  if  you  look  to  other 
plants,  you  will  every  where  find  the  same 
careful  arrangements  for  preserving  the  seeds, 
and  thus  sustaining  the  races  of  trees,  and 
flowers,  and  plants.  In  the  pine,  the  seed 
is  defended  by  the  hard  compact  scales  of  a 
cone  :  in  the  artichoke,  it  is  barricadoed  by 
spikes  or  prickles  ;  in  the  mushroom,  it  is  shel- 
tered in  a  sort  of  penthouse.  Thus,  the  design 
of  preserving  the  seeds  seems  to  be  displayed 
throughout  the  vegetable  kingdom,  and  the 
contrivances  by  which  it  is  accomplished  are 
ingenious  and  diversified.  Shells,  pods,  husks, 
pulps,  skins,  scales,  all  are  resorted  to,  to  de- 
fend the  seeds. 

Nor  are  there  contrivances,  for  defence  a- 
gainst  the  weather,  alone.  Some  are  designed 
to  keep  them  from  the  birds  and  squirrels  and 
other  animals,  till  they  are  ripened,  when  they 
are  opened  of  themselves.  Thus  the  chesnut, 
is  enclosed  in  a  prickly  burr,  but  when  ripe, 
this  burr  parts  and  the  chesnut  falls  out.     So 


parley's  farewell.  13 

the  walnut  is  cased  in  a  bitter  rind,  but  when 
ripe,  this  opens  and  leaves  the  nut  free. 

A  similar  design  is  exhibited  in  respect  to 
all  plants.  While  young  and  tender,  the  seeds 
are  carefully  protected.  They  are  not  only  en- 
closed and  defended,  but  they  adhere  closely 
and  tenaciously  to  the  parent  stems.  But 
when  ripe,  the  pod  or  husk,  or  shell,  or  burr, 
opens,  and  they  are  also  released  from  the 
stem. 

Thus,  two  great  objects  are  accomplished  ; 
a  vast  amount  of  food  is  provided  for  man, 
and  for  the  birds  and  beasts,  and,  at  the  same 
time,  the  means  are  secured  by  which  all  the 
races  of  plants  may  be  perpetuated.  Some  of 
the  seeds  fall  upon  the  ground,  and  spring  up 
at  the  root  of  its  parent  stalk  ;  some  are 
scattered  by  the  winds,  and  strew  the  distant 
fields  with  vegetation  ;  some  are  carried  by 
birds  to  distant  lands  ;  and  thus  the  produc- 
tions of  the  earth  are  diversified,  extended  and 
increased. 


14  NATURAL   RELIGION, 


Chapter  II. 

Plants  do  not  think,  how  then  can  they  contrive  ?  They  do  not 
contrive,  but  some  one  contrives  for  them.  Who  is  it  ?  Plants 
prove  the  existence  of  a  thinking,  designing,  contriving  Being,  in- 
finitely superior  to  man  in  wisdom  and  power,  whom  we  call  God. 
The  ends  answered  by  seeds,  the  supplying  of  food  and  the  perpetua- 
tion of  the  races  of  plants,  prove  the  existence  of  a  designing  Being — 
a  God. 

While  we  continued  our  walk,  the  conver- 
sation between  me  and  my  pleasant  little  friends 
went  on  as  follows. 

Jane.  Well  Mr.  Parley,  I  presume  what 
you  tell  us  is  all  true,  for  you  would  not  de- 
ceive us  ;  besides,  we  see  that  the  wheat  stalks 
do  take  care  of  the  tender  ears,  and  we  know 
that  the  pea  seeds  are  enclosed  in  pods.  But 
then,  the  wheat  stalks,  and  the  pea  stalks,  and 
the  bean  stalks,  and  the  cotton  stalks  do  not 
think  ;  how  then  can  they  contrive  such  in- 
genious modes  of  taking  care  of  their  seeds. 

Parley.  It  is  true  that  the  plants  do  not  think  ; 
and  what  does  not  think,  cannot  contrive. 
Therefore,  these  plants  do  not  contrive  these 
ingenious  modes  of  taking  care  of  their  seeds. 

Jane,     Who  contrives  for  them,  then  ? 


parley's  farewell.  15 

Parley.     Cannot  you  tell  me  Jane  ? 

Jane.  I  have  heard  it  said  that  Nature  does 
all  these  things. 

Parley.     And  what  is  Nature  ? 

Jane.  I  do  not  exactly  know,  but  I  sup- 
posed it  to  be  that  power  which  produces  all 
things. 

Parley.  Nature  is  a  word  which  we  often 
use  without  attaching  to  it  a  precise  meaning  : 
but  if  it  be  that  power  which  produces  all 
things,  it  must  be  a  thinking  power,  else  how 
could  it  contrive  all  these  wonderful  things  ? 

James.  It  appears  to  me  that  by  Nature, 
Jane  means  God. 

Parley.  I  think  she  does,  and  then  her 
answer  would  be  correct.  It  is  God  who  con- 
trives for  the  wheat,  and  the  peas,  and  the  beans, 
and  the  cotton,  the  means  of  taking  care  of  their 
seeds.  These  things  display  great  and  inge- 
nious contrivances,  yet  they  do  not  themselves 
think  ;  they  do  not  feel ;  they  do  not  know 
any  thing  :  they  have  no  intelligence.  They 
cannot,  of  themselves  even  move  ;  how  then  can 
they  set  about  planning,  devising  and  contriv- 
ing ingenious  schemes  of  protection  and  defence 
for  their  seeds. 


16  NATURAL   RELIGION. 

It  is  clear  that  some  thinking,  contriving, 
intelligent  Being  must  be  at  work  in  producing 
plants.  Insects,  cannot  produce  plants,  nor 
can  animals,  nor  can  man,  the  most  knowing 
and  ingenious  inhabitant  of  the  earth.  He 
may  plant  a  seed  and  it  may  grow,  but  he  does 
not  make  it  grow.  Nor  can  man  make  a  seed 
of  any  kind.  He  may  make  a  watch,  but  if 
you  plant  it,  it  will  not  grow.  He  cannot 
make  even  a  blade  of  grass,  or  a  tree,  or  a 
shrub.  Some  being  superior  to  man,  infinitely 
more  wise,  ingenious  and  powerful  than  man, 
must  be  the  creator,  contriver  and  supporter 
of  plants.  That  being  we  call  God.  The 
plants  prove  his  existence  as  clearly  as  if  we 
saw  him  ;  for  they  could  not  have  existed,  it 
not  produced  by  such  a  being  ;  and  if  not  sus- 
tained and  continued  by  such  a  being,  they 
would  cease. 

The  great  ends  answered  by  seeds,  are  the 
supplying  of  food  to  man  and  animals,  and  the 
perpetuation  of  the  races  of  plants.  These 
show  the  work  of  a  great  and  intelligent  De- 
signer. They  show  that  one  who  thinks,  and 
knows,  one  who  intends  to  produce  results, 
one  whose  plans  are  vast  as  this  wide  world, 


parley's  farewell.  17 

and  extend  to  every  tree  and  shrub  and  plant, 
and  include  all  animals,  presides  over  the 
world.  They  show  that  he  is  a  Being  whose 
power  is  equal  to  his  designs,  for  all  the  plants 
and  trees  and  flowers,  whether  in  America,  or 
Europe,  or  Africa,  or  Asia,  rise  out  of  the 
ground  at  his  bidding,  grow  in  the  various 
forms  he  has  provided,  take  care  of  their 
seeds  as  he  has  directed,  and  come  to  maturity 
as  he  has  commanded.  If  it  be  remembered 
that  a  plant  cannot  grow  of  itself,  that  it  will 
perish  if  not  sustained  and  carried  forward  by 
some  power  out  of  itself,  we  shall  see  that  the 
great  Author  and  contriver  and  sustainer  of 
plants  must  watch  over  every  one,  direct  its 
growth,  guide  and  develope  its  powers,  shape 
each  leaf  and  flower,  and  form  every  seed. 
Plants  prove  that  such  a  Being  does  exist,  and 
that  Beinsr  we  call  God. 


2 


18  NATURAL  RELIGION. 

Chapter  III. 

The  Wild  Daisy.    * 

Parley.  The  following  lines  are  designed  to 
show  that  a  single  wild  daisy,  found  in  the 
woods  early  in  the  spring,  clearly  proves  the 
existence  of  a  God,  for  how  could  it  spring  up 
and  put  forth  its  bloom,  if  God  did  not  cause 
it  to  do  so  ?  If  it  is  answered  that  nature 
caused  it  to  do  so,  then  nature  must  be  a  think- 
ing being  ;  a  being  that  is  capable  of  contriv- 
ing all  the  delicate  mechanism  of  a  plant,  and 
of  adapting  the  means  to  produce  the  result. 

Nature  must,  according  to  this,  be  not  only 
a  thinking  Being,  but  a  very  ingenious  and 
powerful  one.  Nature  must  be,  therefore,  pre- 
cisely that  Being  we  call  God.  To  say  then 
that  nature  causes  a  daisy  to  grow,  is  the 
same  thing  as  saying  that  God  caused  it  to 
grow  ;  for  in  either  case,  the  growth  of  the 
flower  is  made  to  depend  on  the  existence  of 
a  thinking  and  designing  Being,  possessed  of 
ingenuity  and  power  infinitely  superior  to  that 
of  man. 


parley's  farewell.  19 

to  a  wild  daisy  in  march. 

My  pretty  flower,  how  cam'st  thou  there? 
Around  thee  all  is  sad  and  sere  ; 
The  brown  leaves  tell  of  winter's  breath, 
And  all  but  thee  of  doom  and  death. 

The  naked  forest  shivering  sighs. 
On  yonder  hill  the  snow-wreath  lies, 
And  all  is  bleak ; — then  say,  sweet  flower, 
How  cam'st  thou  here  in  such  an  hour? 

No  tree  unfolds  its  timid  bud, 
Chill  pours  the  hill-side's  lurid  flood, 
The  tuneless  forest  all  is  dumb; — 
How  then,  fair  violet,  didst  thou  come? 

Spring  hath  not  scattered  yet  her  flowers, 
But  lingers  still  in  southern  bowers; 
No  gardener's  art  hath  cherished  thee, 
For  wild  and  lone  thou  springest  free. 

Thou  springest  here  to  man  unknown, 
Waked  into  life  by  God  alone  ! 
Sweet  flower,  thou  tellest  well  thy  birth, — 
Thou  cam'st  from  heaven,  though  soiled  in  earth. 

Thou  tell'st  of  Him  whose  boundless  power 
Speaks  into  birth  a  world  or  flower ; 
And  dost  a  God  as  clearly  prove 
As  all  the  orbs  in  heaven  that  move. 


20  NATURAL  RELIGION. 


Chapter  IV. 

Man  cannot  make  a  seed,  and  if  he  could  it  would  not  grow.  God 
only  can  make  a  thing  grow.  The  artificial  bird.  Use  of  the  word 
Nature.  Its  true  meaning.  JVo  such  thing  as  nature  acting  and 
producing,  independent  of  God. 

When  I  had  recited  these  lines  to  my 
young  pupils,  the  following  dialogue  occurred 
between  us. 

Jane.  Mr.  Parley,  I  think  it  is  quite  true, 
as  you  have  told  us,  that  the  existence  of  plants 
prove  the  existence  of  a  God.  Since  you 
spoke  to  us  about  the  seeds  of  beans  and  peas, 
and  other  plants,  James  and  I  have  talked  a 
good  deal  on  the  subject.  James  said  he  could 
make  a  pea  with  his  penknife  and  so  he  got  a 
pea  to  examine  it — but  when  he  broke  it  open, 
he  found  that  it  consisted  of  several  parts  all 
nicely  packed  together  ;  and  he  found  that  he 
could  not  imitate  it. 

James.  That  is  all  true,  and  if  I  could  have 
made  a  pea,  I  could  not  have  made  the  pod. 

Parley.  Nor  could  any  man  :  and  if  you 
could  make  a  pea,  it  would  only  be  a  cheat, 
for  put  it  in  the  ground,  and  it  would  not  grow. 
No  peas  but  those  made  by  God  will  grow  ; 


parley's  farewell.  21 

for  it  is  He  alone  that  can  put  into  a  seed  the 
principle  of  vegetable  life. 

I  have  seen  a  little  box  at  Bonfanti's  shop 
in  New  York,  which,  when  wound  up  like  a 
watch,  would  open  at  the  top,  and  a  little  bird 
would  come  up,  flutter  his  wings,  jerk  his  tail, 
turn  his  head  and  sing  a  song,  and  then  he 
would  disappear  into  the  box  again.  But  this 
was  not  a  real  bird  ;  it  was  only  an  ingenious 
contrivance,  by  which  little  pieces  of  brass  and 
silver,  in  the  shape  of  a  bird,  were  made  to 
imitate  the  manners  and  song  of  a  bird.  It 
was  a  mere  piece  of  mechanism.  The  man 
who  made  this,  might  make  a  thing  like  a  pea, 
but  neither  he  nor  the  most  ingenious  man  that 
ever  lived,  could  make  a  real  pea,  that  would 
grow. 

Kings  have  commanded  their  subjects  to 
build  vast  pyramids,  and  they  have  been  obeyed, 
but  if  they  were  to  require  them  to  make  a 
pea — or  a  real  seed,  of  any  kind — even  a  single 
grain  of  mustard  seed,  one  that  would  grow, 
they  would  ask  what  could  not  be  done  by 
man.  No  man  has  ever  lived  that  had  the 
power  to  make  a  real  seed,  or  a  real  blade  of 
grass,  or  a  real  flower.     Man  may  make  imi- 


22  NATURAL   RELIGION. 

tations,  but  they  lack  life — they  are  wanting  in 
the  power  of  growing.  That  is  what  man  cannot 
give.  The  growing  of  plants,  then,  shows  that 
there  is  at  work  a  Being  superior  to  man,  and 
that  Being  is  God. 

Jane.  If  it  is  God  that  makes  plants  grow, 
why  do  people  talk  so  much  about  nature  ?  I 
have  heard  it  often  said  that  nature  does  this 
and  does  that.  I  asked  my  father  the  other 
day  what  it  was  that  made  a  tree  grow,  and  he 
said  it  was  nature.  Now  what  do  people  mean 
by  nature  ? 

Parley.  By  nature,  people  generally  mean 
only  those  laws  which  God  has  laid  down  for 
the  government  of  the  Universe.  His  mode  of 
working  is  very  different  from  that  of  man.  If 
a  man  speaks  to  a  stone  or  a  mass  of  earth,  it 
will  not  mind  him.  Bat  such  is  the  power  of 
God,  that  even  inert,  unthinking  matter  obeys 
his  commands.  Instead  therefore  of  being 
obliged  to  use  hands  to  work  with,  he  pervades 
all  space  with  his  will,  and  every  thing  con- 
forms to  it.  He  lays  down  general  rules,  and 
these  remain  fixed  from  age  to  age.  He  has 
ordained  winter  and  summer,  and  accordingly, 
there  is  a  season  when  things  grow,  and  a  sea- 


parley's  farewell.  23 

son  in  which  they  perish.  He  has  made  it  one 
of  his  laws  that  if  a  seed  is  put  into  the  earth, 
it  shall  grow  and  produce  a  plant.  He  has 
made  it  a  law  that  each  plant  shall  take  care 
of  its  seed,  so  that  it  may  come  to  perfection, 
and  the  plants  obey  Him. 

Thus,  all  things  are  under  the  regulation  of 
certain  established  rules  ;  these  we  call  the 
laws  of  nature,  or  sometimes  we  call  the  laws 
themselves,  nature.  When  we  see  a  plant 
growing,  obedient  to  the  law  God  has  establish- 
ed, we  say  nature  makes  it  grow.  It  was  in  this 
sense  James's  father  used  the  word;  by  which 
he  meant  that  the  laws  of  God  make  the  trees 
grow.  The  true  meaning  of  the  word,  is,  the 
system  of  laws  by  which  God  works.  To  say 
that  nature  does  a  thing,  is  only  to  say  that  it 
is  done  according  to  the  laws  prescribed  by  the 
Creator  and  Governor  of  the  world. 

The  idea  that  some  ignorant  people  seem  to 
have,  that  Nature  is  an  active,  efficient  power, 
independent  of  God,  is  utterly  absurd.  Nothing 
can  act  that  has  not  a  power  of  motion  in  itself. 
Nothing  can  exercise  powers  to  form  and  accom- 
plish any  plan  or  design,  unless  it  is  a  thinking 
being.  Those  who  suppose  that  nature  is  a  thing 


24*  NATURAL   RELIGION. 

which  acts  in  a  manner  to  do  any  thing,  to  ac- 
complish any  design,  must  suppose  it  to  possess 
the  power  of  motion  and  a  mind.  If  nature  is 
supposed  to  produce  plants,  it  must  be  supposed 
to  possess  a  mind  of  infinite  wisdom,  and  in- 
genuity and  power;  and  such  a  Being  is  God. 
Those  who  speak  of  nature,  as  itself,  doing  what 
man  with  all  his  ingenuity  cannot  do,  speak  of  a 
Being  superior  to  man,  and  his  proper  title  is 
God.  There  is  no  such  thing  as  nature  inde- 
pendent of  God  :  nature  is  only  that  system  of 
laws,  by  which  God  carries  on  his  plans,  and 
performs  his  works. 

I  ought  however  to  say,  that  the  earth,  with 
all  its  array  of  fields,  and  plants,  rivers  and 
lakes,  is  sometimes  called  nature.  The  word,  in 
this  sense,  however,  only  means  the  elements  of 
earth,  air  and  water,  and  the  various  forms  they 
assume.  These  are  incapable  of  any  action  of 
themselves  ;  of  themselves  they  are  mere  dead 
matter;  all  the  active  power  they  possess,  is 
derived  from  God.  A  grain  of  sand,  a  mass 
of  earth,  a  mote  of  air,  a  stream  of  water, 
cannot  move,  but  by  the  impulse  of  some 
power  external  to  itself.  If  there  were  no  God, 
these  would  remain  forever  as  they  are.  Those 


Page  25. 


parley's    farewell.  25 

who  suppose  that  there  is  in  the  earth  or  the 
air  or  the  water,  a  power,  called  nature,  which 
produces  plants,  which  makes  things  grow — 
must  suppose  that  it  is  an  intelligent,  thinking, 
contriving  power ;  one  that  is  infinitely  superior 
to  man.  The  proper  title  of  such  a  being  is 
God. 


Chapter  V. 


The  partridge's  feather.  Who  made  it?  Man  cannot  make  a  feather, 
much  less  a  wing.  Story  of  a  man  who  tried  to  make  wings  and  fly.  Who 
makes  eggs  ?  Who  makes  birds  1  Birds  do  not  make  eggs,  or  birds. 
Man  cannot  make  eggs,  or  birds.     The  existence  of  birds  proves  a  God. 

A  few  days  after  the  preceding  conversation,  I 
was  walking  with  my  young  companions,  when 
James  picked  up  the  feather  of  a  partridge.  We 
all  admired  it  very  much  ;  and  after  a  little 
conversation  the  following  dialogue  took  place. 

Jane.  Pray,  Mr.  Parley,  who  made  this 
beautiful  feather? 

Parley.    It  grew  on  the  wing  of  a  partridge. 

Jane.    Did  the  partridge  make  it  then? 

Parley.  Do  you  make  the  hair  that  grows 
on  your  head? 


26  NATURAL    RELIGION. 

Jane.  No,  surely  not  :  and  the  partridge 
could  not  make  a  feather.  Who  then  did 
make  it? 

Parley.  Here  !  James,  look  at  this  feather  ! 
see  how  ingeniously  it  is  contrived,  how  beau- 
tifully it  is  painted  !  Do  you  think  you  could 
make  a  feather? 

James.  No  indeed.  Could  any  man  make 
a  feather? 

Parley.  No.  The  ingenuity  displayed  in 
this  feather  is  quite  beyond  the  reach  of  human 
imitation.  But  if  man  could  make  a  single 
feather,  could  he  make  the  wing  of  a  bird,  with 
its  hundred  feathers?  Could  he  make  all  its 
joints,  and  muscles,  and  adapt  it  so  that  a  bird 
could  fly  with  it?  Surely  not.  Ingenious 
men  have  often  tried  to  make  wings,  and  have 
never  succeeded. 

I  once  heard  of  a  very  ingenious  man,  who 
made  a  pair  of  things  which  he  called  wings, 
and  he  really  thought  he  could  fly  with  them. 
So  he  mounted  upon  the  roof  of  a  house,  spread 
his  wings,  and  expected  to  fly  up  into  the  air. 
Instead  of  this,  he  fell  to  the  ground,  and 
bruised  himself  sadly.  One  of  his  neighbors 
then  asked  him  if  he  still  thought  he  could  fly  : 


parley's  farewell.  27 

14  Yes"  said  the  man,  "  but  it  is  very  hard 
'lighting. " 

If  man  can  neither  make  a  feather,  nor  a 
wing,  he  certainly  cannot  make  a  bird.  He 
can  as  well  make  a  whole  bird  as  a  part ;  but 
as  he  cannot  make  a  part,  he  cannot  make  a 
whole. 

James.  But  Mr.  Parley,  birds  are  hatched 
from  eggs,  and  then  they  grow  up.  That 's 
the  way  birds  are  made. 

Parley.  True  my  boy — but  are  you  satis- 
fied with  that  answer?  Who  makes  the  eggs 
of  the  bird  ?  Who  contrived  eggs,  from  which 
birds  are  hatched  ? 

James.     Don't  the  birds  make  the  eggs  ? 

Parley.  Surely  not.  The  eggs  grow  in  the 
birds  and  they  lay  them  in  the  nest.  This  is 
all  the  birds  do,  in  producing  eggs.  And  then 
they  sit  upon  them  for  two  or  three  weeks,  and 
the  young  birds  break  the  shell,  and  come  out 
of  the  eggs.  But  have  birds  ingenuity  enough 
to  contrive  eggs?  Can  they  do  what  the  most 
ingenious  man  that  ever  lived,  could  not  do? 
And  if  they  could  contrive  eggs,  could  they 
put  into  them  that  principle  which  would  make 
the   yolk   and    white   turn    into   feathers    and 


28  NATURAL   RELIGION. 

claws,  and  bones  and  flesh,  and  endow  the  body 
thus  formed  with  a  power  of  life  which  should 
enable  the  creature  to  move,  to  eat,  to  sleep,  to 
sing,  and  to  produce  other  eggs  ? 

It  is  absurd  to  suppose  that  a  bird  devises, 
contrives,  or  makes  an  egg.  It  is  absurd  to 
suppose  that  one  bird  makes  another  bird. 
Whoever  makes  an  egg,  must  be  infinitely 
superior  to  man  for  he  does  that  which  puts 
mans  ingenuitv  to  shame.  Whoever  makes  a 
bird,  must  be  the  maker  of  the  egg.  Some 
being  of  wonderful  skill  in  contriving  and 
designing — some  thinking  intelligent  power, 
must  exist,  else  birds  could  not  exist.  That 
Being  is  God.  The  existence  of  birds  then 
proves  the  existence  of  a  Being  of  wonderful 
ingenuity  in  design  and  power  in  execution : 
and  therefore  proves  the  existence  of  God. 


Chapter  VI. 


Birds  produce  eggs,  but  do  not  make  them.  Ingenuity  displayed  in 
the  construction  of  an  egg.  It  surpasses  even  the  ingenuity  of  man. 
Thus  eggs  prove  the  existence  of  God. 

A  few  days  after  the  conversation  about  birds, 
James  and  Jane  came  to  see  me.     By  this  time, 


Skeleton  of  a  Bird,  p.  28. 


parley's    farewell.  29 

they  had  become  deeply  interested  in  the  sub- 
ject of  our  several  dialogues.  They  began 
now  to  look  upon  every  object  around  them  as 
proofs  of  the  existence  of  God,  and  they  began 
to  examine  them  carefully  as  the  means  of 
becoming  acquainted  with  His  wisdom,  good- 
ness and  power.  But  now,  a  difficulty  had 
crossed  James'  mind,  and  bringing  his  sister 
with  him,  he  came  to  talk  with  me  about  it. 
Accordingly,  the  following  conversation  took 
place. 

James.  I  have  no  doubt  Mr.  Parley,  that 
what  you  have  told  us  is  true;  but  I  have  been 
so  long  accustomed  to  think  that  one  bird  has 
the  power  of  producing  another  that  I  can 
hardly  get  over  the  impression.  We  say  that 
a  bird  lays  an  egg,  and  then  she  sits  upon  it, 
and  produces  the  young  birds,  and  we  say  that 
she  hatches  them;  now,  all  this  seems  to  imply 
that  the  old  bird  makes  the  young  birds. 

Parley.  This  language  is  accurate  enough 
for  common  uses,  but  it  is  not  strictly  true. 
The  old  bird  produces  the  eggs,  and  by  the 
heat  of  her  body,  she  hatches  them;  but  she 
does  not  make  the  egg.  Consider,  a  moment, 
what  an  egg  is.     It  consists  of  a  delicate  shell. 


30  NATURAL    RELIGION. 

polished  without  and  lined  with  a  soft,  silky 
pellicle.  It  is  filled  with  a  glutinous  matter, 
the  outer  part  of  which  is  called  the  white,  and 
the  inner  part  the  yolk  ;  yet  this  fluid  is  so  won- 
derfully mixed  and  consists  of  such  elements 
that  by  being  kept  warm  for  two  or  three  weeks, 
it  is  converted  into  a  living  bird,  with  claws, 
legs,  wings,  tail,  neck,  head,  bill,  and  all  the 
means  for  eating  and  digesting  its  food.  It  has 
also  a  principle  of  life,  by  which  it  moves, 
breathes,  eats,  drinks,  flies,  sings  and  produces 
eggs,  which  eggs  produce  other  birds. 

Such  is  the  wonderful  ingenuity  displayed  in 
the  construction  of  an  egg.  It  surpasses  in 
ingenuity  of  contrivance  every  thing  that  man 
can  do.  A  man  can  make  a  watch,  but  it 
cannot  breathe,  or  eat,  or  drink.  It  has  no 
principle  of  life.  When  the  spring  that  keeps 
it  in  motion,  is  expanded,  the  watch  runs  down 
and  ceases  to  move.  Nor  can  one  watch  pro- 
duce another  watch.  How  infinitely  superior 
then  is  an  egg  to  the  most  ingenious  of  man's 
contrivances.  It  produces  a  bird,  which  in 
every  part  surpasses  man's  invention.  Man 
cannot  even  make  a  single  feather,  yet  an  egg 
produces  a  bird  with  hundreds  of  feathers.     It 


parley's   farewell.  31 

also  produces  a  bird  that  can  produce  other 
eggs,  and  these  eggs  will  produce  other  birds. 

Can  a  bird  then  make  an  egg — a  thing  which 
puts  to  shame  the  boasted  ingenuity  of  man, 
and  excites  our  utmost  wonder?  Certainly  not. 
An  egg  must  be  the  work  of  One  infinitely 
superior  to  man  in  ingenuity.  It  must  be  one 
who  can  not  only  command  and  mould  the 
elements  of  earth,  air,  heat  and  water,  but  one 
who  can  endow  his  works  with  that  mysterious 
power  which  we  call  life.  It  must,  therefore, 
be  the  work  of  one  whose  skill  in  contrivance 
and  whose  power  in  execution  infinitely  sur- 
passes, not  birds  only,  but  man  himself. 

But  it  is  important  here  to  observe  one  thing, 
and  it  will  easily  explain  James'  difficulty.  In 
executing  his  various  works,  God  employs  cer- 
tain tools  or  instruments,  and  proceeds  accord- 
ing to  certain  rules.  Thus,  he  uses  a  bird,  as 
the  instrument  or  tool,  by  which  an  egg  is  pro- 
duced. You  have  seen  a  carpenter  build  a 
house.  He  has,  in  the  first  place,  a  plan,  and 
then  he  has  tools  and  instruments  to  work  with, 
such  as  planes,  chisels,  saws,  axes,  &c.:  and 
by  means  of  these  tools,  the  carpenter  pro- 
duces a  house.     But  would  it  not  be  silly  to 


32  NATURAL   RELIGION. 

say  that  the  tools  of  the  carpenter,  the  planes, 
chisels,  saws,  and  axes  made  the  house?  Cer- 
tainly it  would,  and  it  would  be  equally  silly 
to  say  that  birds  make  eggs,  while  they  are 
only  the  tools  or  instruments,  by  which  the 
creator  makes  them. 

But  let  us  suppose,  for  a  moment,  that  a  bird 
has  the  power  of  making  an  egg — a  real  one 
that  may  be  hatched.  Who  then  made  the  first 
bird,  for  there  must  have  been  a  beginning  to 
the  race  of  birds? 

Jane.     It  might  have  been  hatched  from  an 

egg- 
Parley.     Who  then  made  that  eggl 

Jane  and  James,  (both  at  once,)  It  must 
have  been  God — there  must  be  a  God! 

Parley.  Yes  my  dear  children,  there  must 
be— there  is,  a  God  ! 


Chapter  VII. 


Every  thing  proves  the  existence  of  God.  About  Insects.  The 
housefly.  Its  structure.  This  proves  clearly  the  existence  of  God. 
All  nature  a  book,  showing  forth  the  existence  of  God. 

James.     It  appears  to  me,  Mr.  Parley,  that 
every  thing  proves  the  existence  of  God ;  the 


parley's  farewell.  33 

insects,  the  animals,  the  fishes,  the  reptiles. 
These  do  not  make  themselves,  and  none  but 
God  can  make  them. 

Parley,  You  are  quite  right  my  boy;  all 
these  things  do  prove  the  existence  of  God. 
But  to  impress  our  minds  with  the  certainty  of 
this  great  and  glorious  truth,  let  us  take  a  glance 
at  some  other  departments  of  God's  works.  For 
the  present,  let  us  turn  our  attention  to  in- 
sects. 

This  great  family  of  living  things,  includes 
the  flies,  gnats,  wasps,  bees,  butterflies,  hornets, 
ants,  spiders,  &c.  They  are  divided  into  a 
great  many  kinds,  and  their  number  is  beyond 
human  conception.  But  let  us  take  one  of 
them — the  common  house  fly.  Who  made  this 
little  creature?  Look  at  its  structure,  and  see 
the  wonderful  ingenuity  displayed  in  it ! 

In  the  first  place,  his  body  is  separated  into 
two  parts,  with  a  joint  in  the  middle.  As  he  has 
no  bones,  like  those  of  birds,  quadrupeds  and 
fishes,  his  body  consists  of  several  horny  plates 
or  scales,  nicely  attached  to  each  other.  His 
wings  are  finer  than  any  human  fabric,  but  his 
eyes  are  the  most  curious  part  of  his  formation. 
These,  when  examined  through  a  powerful  mag- 
3 


34  NATURAL    RELIGION. 

nifying  glass,  are  each  found  to  contain  4000 
minute  lenses.  This  is  wonderful  indeed,  but 
you  must  consider  one  thing  farther,  and  that 
is  that  the  maker  of  the  fly  has  put  life  into 
this  little  creature  by  which  the  body  can  move, 
by  which  the  little  wings  are  made  to  vibrate 
so  swiftly  as  to  become  invisible,  and  by  which 
the  4000  lenses  of  the  eye  are  used  for  the 
purpose  of  seeing  every  minute  object  that  may 
be  near. 

Such  is  the  wonderful  structure  of  the  common 
house  fly,  and  now,  let  us  ask  who  made  it? 
Like  other  insects,  the  fly  is  hatched  from  an 
Ggg,  but  who  makes  the  egg? 

James.  Really,  Mr.  Parley,  it  seems  to  me 
that  this  subject  grows  more  and  more  interest- 
ing at  every  step,  and  I  am  very  glad  you  have 
brought  it  to  our  notice.  I  had  no  idea,  that  a  fly 
was  so  very  curious  a  thing,  but  it  seems  to  me  a 
more  wonderful  contrivance  even  than  a  bird; 
and  I  think  it  proves  the  existence  of  a  God 
more  strongly  than  any  thing  else  you  have 
mentioned. 

Jane.  I  am  sure  I  shall  always  think  of  a 
fly  very  differently  now  from  what  I  did  before. 
I  used  to  think  a  fly  was  an   insignificant  little 


Pauley's    farewell.  35 

thing,  but  I  shall  never  see  one  hereafter,  without 
thinking  of  its  wonderful  structure.  It  will 
always  appear  to  me  as  one  of  the  wonderful 
works  of  God  and  as  clearly  proving  his  ex- 
istence. 

Parley.  I  am  very  glad  to  hear  you  say 
these  things,  my  little  friends,  for  they  show  that 
you  take  a  just  view  of  the  subject.  The 
works  of  nature,  the  plants,  insects,  animals, 
are  placed  around  us,  and  we  have  within  a 
principle  of  curiosity  which  inclines  us  to  ex- 
amine them.  But  when  once  we  make  them 
the  objects  of  careful  and  patient  study,  as 
proving  the  existence  of  a  superior  Being  and 
as  displaying  the  wisdom,  goodness  and  power 
of  that  Being,  then  every  tree  and  plant  and 
bird  and  insect,  becomes  to  us  a  subject  of  the 
deepest  interest.  Every  thing  around  seems 
then  to  speak  of  God.  All  nature  is  a  book, 
every  page  of  which  declares  the  existence  of 
God.  The  earth,  the  air,  the  sea,  the  heavens 
are  full  of  his  glory,  and  all  show  forth  his 
handy  work. 


36  NATURAL   RELIGION. 


Chapter  VIII. 

Of  fishes.     Description   of  the  perch.      Wonderful  ingenuity   dis- 
played in  the  structure  of  fishes.     Fishes  prove  the  existence  of  a  God. 

Parley.  Let  us  now  turn  our  attention  to 
fishes.  These  inhabit  the  seas,  lakes  and  rivers; 
they  are  of  various  sizes  from  the  whale  to  the 
minow,  and  of  forms  as  diversified  as  the  very 
flowers  of  the  field.  But  examine  the  most 
common  of  them  all,  and  you  will  see  occasion 
to  admire  the  skill  displayed  in  its  contrivance. 
Let  us  take  the  perch  of  our  own  ponds,  with 
which  every  school  boy  is  familiar.  It  is 
covered  with  a  tough  skin,  to  which,  a  series 
of  scales  are  nicely  fitted  and  all  of  which  are 
set  on  hinges  which  yield  to  the  motions  of  the 
fish.  What  human  ingenuity  can  match  this 
contrivance?  Then  look  at  the  fins — thin  as 
silk,  and  spread  on  delicate  frames  made  of 
bone,  and  all  so  nicely  adjusted  as  to  be  to  the 
fish  what  wings  are  to  the  bird.  By  means  of 
these  fins,  the  fish  pushes  himself  through  the 
water  almost  as  swiftly  as  an  arrow  flies  through 
the  air,  and  these  enable  him  to  turn  hither  and 
thither  at  his  pleasure.     If  he  wishes  to  rise 


parley's  farewell.  37 

or  sink  in  the  water,  he  is  furnished  with  an 
air  bladder,  which  enables  him  to  do  it  as 
easily  as  we  draw  a  breath. 

This  description  will  apply  to  many  other 
fishes,  but  while  some  are  without  scales  and 
are  only  defended  by  a  slippery  skin,  others 
have  the  protection  of  shells.  Some  are  more 
curious  than  others,  but  they  all  exhibit  proofs 
of  masterly  skill  in  their  Creator.  They  are  all 
beyond  the  power  of  man's  invention  or  execu- 
tion. The  little  minow  of  an  inch  in  length, 
as  well  as  the  whale  of  eighty  feet,  surpasses  the 
boldest  efforts  of  human  genius.  We  shall 
look  in  vain  among  the  inhabitants  of  the  earth 
for  the  maker  of  the  humblest  of  fishes.  One 
and  all  assure  us  that  a  superior  Being,  one  of 
intelligence  and  ingenuity  infinitely  beyond  man, 
must  have  been  the  Architect  of  fishes. 


Chapter  IX, 


About  reptiles.  The  frog,  lizards,  alligator,  crocodile.  The  le- 
viathan of  the  Scriptures.  Other  reptiles.  JYone  but  a  superior 
being  could  have  made  them. 

Parley.     There  is  a  class  of  animals  called 
reptiles,  including   frogs,  toads,    lizards,  tor- 


38  NATURAL   RELIGION. 

toises,  serpents,  &x.  These  are  divided  into  a 
vast  variety  of  species,  and  are  endowed  with 
many  different  properties.  They  are  all  in- 
teresting subjects  of  inquiry,  and  as  proving 
the  existence  of  a  superior  Being,  are  equally 
entitled  to  attention. 

Let  us  take  the  common  frog ;  at  first,  it  is 
an  egg,  but  after  about  twenty  days,  a  tail 
peeps  out.  In  a  short  time,  it  acquires  the 
tadpole  form,  and  is  then  called  pollyivog  by 
the  schoolboys.  In  three  days  after  assuming 
this  shape,  two  little  fringes  which  serve  as  fins, 
grow  out  from  beneath  the  head.  Thus  they 
move  about,  and  live  upon  pond  weed. 

When  they  are  92  days  old,  two  small  feet 
begin  to  sprout  near  the  tail,  and  in  a  very 
short  time,  the  hinder  legs  are  formed.  In  two 
days  more,  the  arms  are  completely  produced. 
After  a  little  while,  the  tail  drops  off,  and  the 
frog,  the  finest  of  all  four-legged  swimmers,  is 
complete  !  Now  he  disdains  the  pond  weed, 
and  lives  upon  worms  and  insects.  What 
human  ingenuity  can  rival  this  wonderful  piece 
of  mechanism,  endowed  with  life  and  motion 
and  the  art  of  getting  a  living.  Who  but 
God  could  produce  this   humblest  and  com- 


The  Crocodile,  p.  39. 


parley's    farewell.  39 

monest  of  reptiles  from  an  egg,  carry  it  through 
all  its  wonderful  transformations,  and  at  last, 
bring  it  to  the  perfection  of  its  race? 

The  lizards  are  still  more  wonderful  than  the 
frogs.  The  crocodile,  which  inhabits  the  rivers 
of  Asia  and  Africa,  and  the  alligator  which  is 
found  in  the  rivers,  bays  and  lagoons  of  America, 
belong  to  this  family.  The  former  is  sometimes 
thirty  feet  in  length,  and  the  latter,  twenty. 
These  creatures  are  destined  to  make  the  larger 
animals  their  prey,  and  they  are  wonderfully 
fitted  for  the  life  they  are  designed  to  lead. 
The  crocodile  is  covered  with  large  scales, 
from  the  shoulders  to  the  extremity  of  the  tail. 
These  are  of  a  square  form,  disposed  like 
parellel  girdles,  and  they  are  so  adjusted, 
as  not  to  obstruct  the  motions  of  the  animal. 
Beside  all  this,  the  creature  is  covered  over  with 
a  skinny  coat  of  armor. 

Such  are  the  defensive  equipments  of  this  for- 
midable reptile.  He  is  also  provided  with  short, 
thick  legs,  and  is  armed  with  powerful  claws, 
and  a  tail  of  extraordinary  strength  and  flexi- 
bility. This  latter  is  its  chief  instrument  of 
destruction.  With  this  it  has  often  been  known 
to  overturn  a  boat  or  canoe,  and  seize  upon  its 
conductor. 


40  NATURAL   RELIGION. 

Such  is  the  crocodile,  which  under  the  name 
of  leviathan  is  thus  spoken  of  in  the  forty-first 
chapter  of  Job. 

"  In  his  neck  remaineth  strength,  and  sorrow 
is  turned  into  joy  before  him. 

The  flakes  of  his  flesh  are  joined  together; 
they  are  firm  in  themselves ;  they  cannot  be 
moved. 

His  heart  is  as  firm  as  stone,  yea,  as  hard  as 
a  piece  of  the  nether  millstone. 

The  sword  of  him  that  layeth  at  him  cannot 
hold — the  spear,  the  dart,  nor  the  halcyon. 

He  esteemeth  iron  as  straw,  and  brass  as 
rotten  wood. 

The  arrow  cannot  make  him  flee;  sling 
stones  are  turned  with  him  into  stubble. 

Darts  are  counted  as  stubble;  he  laugheth 
at  the  shaking  of  a  spear. 

Sharp  stones  are  under  him;  he  spreadeth 
sharp-pointed  things  upon  the  mire. 

He  maketh  the  deep  to  boil  like  a  pot ;  he 
maketh  the  sea  like  a  pot  of  ointment." 

It  is  pleasant  to  find  in  the  Bible  so  minute 
and  accurate  a  description  of  an  animal  well 
known  in  our  own  day,  and  this  passage  is 
particularly  interesting  for  the  beauty  and  force 


parley's  farewell.  41 

of  the  language.  How  strongly  does  it  make 
us  feel  that  the  leviathan  could  only  have  been 
made  by  God  ! 

It  would  be  pleasant  to  follow  out  this  train 
of  observation,  in  respect  to  other  reptiles ; 
for  they  all  serve  to  set  forth  and  confirm  the 
undeniable  fact  of  a  Creator.  The  humble 
and  familiar  toad,  the  creeping  toirtoise,  the 
sliding  serpent,  the  changeful  chamelion — one 
and  all  are  beyond  the  utmost  stretch  of  human 
invention,  and  bespeak  a  designing,  contriv- 
ing, creative  power. 


Chapter  X. 

The  existence  of  a  Deity,  proved  by  the  structure  of  quadrupeds. 
The  elephant.  His  frame.  His  tusks — his  short  neck — and  the  pro- 
boscis to  compensate  the  defect.  Ingenuity  of  the  proboscis.  Man 
could  not  make  elephants.  None  but  a  Superior  Being  could  create 
them. 

Some  days  now  elapsed  before  I  had  an  op- 
portunity to  pursue  this  subject  with  my  pupils. 
At  length,  they  paid  me  a  visit,  and  at  their 
request,  I  proceeded  to  speak  of  the  evidence 
furnished  by  quadrupeds  of  the  existence  of  a 
Deity,  in  substance  as  follows. 


42  NATURAL   RELIGION. 

Parley.  This  class  of  animals  are  superior 
in  intelligence  to  the  birds,  the  fishes,  the  rep- 
tiles and  the  insects.  They  are  clearly  a  higher 
order  of  beings ;  their  organization  is  more 
curious  and  perfect,  and  their  faculties  are  of 
a  superior  grade. 

The  elephant  is  generally  regarded  as  the 
most  intelligent  of  mere  animals,  but  it  appears 
to  me  that  the  dog  is  not  in  this  respect  his  in- 
ferior. But  I  shall  have  occasion  to  speak 
more  particularly  of  the  intelligence  of  animals 
by  and  by.  My  deeign  has  been  hitherto,  and 
now  is,  rather  to  direct  your  attention  to  the 
mechanical  structure  of  animals  and  deduce 
from  the  ingenuity  displayed  in  this,  evidence 
of  the  existence  of  a  Being  superior  to  man 
and  all  other  inhabitants  of  the  earth. 

Perhaps  this  evidence  is  furnished  as  well 
by  the  structure  of  one  animal  as  another. 
The  house  iiy  shows  a  skill  of  workmanship 
surpassing  that  of  man  as  truly  as  the  structure 
of  an  elephant.  But  there  is  something  in  the 
magnitude  of  this  animal  that  impresses  the 
imagination  and  sways  even  the  judgment.  It 
may  be  well  therefore  to  consider  its  formation, 
with  reference  to  this  question. 


The  Elephant,  p.  43, 


parley's  farewell.  43 

In  many  respects,  the  skeleton  or  frame  of  the 
elephant  resembles  that  of  other  quadrupeds. 
This  frame  consists  of  a  series  of  bones  extend- 
ing along  the  back,  carefully  fitted  together,  call- 
ed the  vertebra?.  To  this,  ribs  are  attached,  and 
the  bones  for  the  legs.  Upon  this  frame-work, 
the  flesh  of  the  animal  is  formed,  and  over  the 
whole  is  a  coating  of  skin.  Within  are  a  heart 
and  lungs,  and  tubes  called  arteries,  and  veins 
for  the  conveyance  of  blood.  Beside  these, 
there  are  the  various  organs  for  receiving,  con- 
ducting, and  digesting  the  food,  as  well  as  a 
great  variety  of  muscles,  veins,  and  fibres. 

This  description  applies  to  most  quadrupeds, 
and  I  wish  you  to  think  of  it  a  moment,  as  a 
mere  piece  of  mechanism.  Consider  the  animal 
when  walking,  leaping,  or  running  about,  and 
think  that  all  these  motions  are  produced  by 
the  contraction  of  the  muscles,  just  as  the  sails 
and  yards  of  a  ship  are  taken  up  and  taken 
down,  by  means  of  ropes.  Consider  too  that 
all  the  joints  in  the  body  of  the  animal,  of 
which  there  are  perhaps  a  hundred,  must  be 
constantly  moving,  and  think  how  smoothly 
they  must  turn  upon  each  other. 

Nor  must  you  stop  here,  for  you  have  only 


44  NATURAL    RELIGION. 

considered  the  bones  and  muscles  of  the  ani- 
mal. Look  now  at  the  heart,  and  see  it  con- 
stantly beating  and  at  every  stroke,  spreading 
the  blood  by  a  thousand  channels  to  every  part 
of  the  body  ! 

But  let  us  turn  our  attention  particularly  to 
the  elephant.  When  he  is  full  grown,  he  has 
two  enormous  tusks,  proceeding  from  his  upper 
jaw.  These  are  necessary  to  the  animal  for 
defence,  but  they  are  so  heavy  that  he  would 
be  unable  to  carry  them,  if  his  neck  were  as 
long  in  proportion  to  his  size  as  that  of  other 
animals.  The  neck  is  accordingly  made  very 
short.  In  consequence  of  the  shortness  of  the 
neck,  the  creature  is  unable  to  get  its  head  to 
the  ground.  To  remedy  this  defect,  it  is  pro- 
vided with  a  tube  or  trunk  extending  from  the 
nose  to  the  length  of  three  or  four  feet. 

To  this  I  wish  particularly  to  call  your  atten- 
tion. It  consists  of  several  thousand  small 
muscles,  crossing  and  interlacing  each  other 
in  the  most  ingenious  manner.  These  muscles 
are  extremely  flexible,  and  are  endowed  with 
the  most  exquisite  sensibility.  The  trunk  is 
terminated  with  an  appendage,  resembling  a 
finger.     To  the  elephant,  the  trunk  answers  all 


parley's    farewell.  45 

the  purposes  of  a  hand.  He  turns  it  this  way 
and  that,  with  the  utmost  ease,  coils  it  up,  or 
stretches  it  out ;  with  this,  he  strikes  a  blow, 
seizes  upon  whatever  he  wishes  to  carry  to  his 
mouth,  sucks  up  water,  and  turns  it  down  his 
throat. 

Now,  who  can  take  into  consideration  all 
these  facts  and  not  be  struck  with  the  skilful 
contrivance  and  wonderful  power  of  execution, 
in  the  creator  of  the  elephant?  What  work  of 
man  can  compare  in  ingenuity  with  the  ele- 
phant's trunk?  What  human  construction  does 
not  sink  into  insignificance  when  compared 
with  the  moving  elephant? 

And  here  again  I  must  ask,  who  made  this 
creature?  Like  most  quadrupeds,  the  young 
elephant  is  brought  forth  alive,  but  can  it  be 
said  with  any  propriety  that  one  elephant  is 
the  creator  of  another.  Does  not  the  structure 
of  an  elephant  show  design,  calculation,  con- 
trivance and  skill?  Certainly,  and  it  proves 
thought,  intelligence  and  mind  in  its  author. 
It  shows  intelligence,  and  mind  and  workman- 
ship, infinitely  superior  to  those  of  man.  And 
is  the  brute  elephant  this  Superior  Being?  The 
idea   is   too   absurd   to   be  entertained  for   a 


46  NATURAL   RELIGION. 

moment.  The  elephant  must  have  had  a  maker 
of  supreme  intelligence  and  power — and  that 
Being  we  call  God. 

The  same  strain  of  argument  may  be  deriv- 
ed from  an  examination  of  other  quadrupeds. 
The  lion  shows  skilful  contrivance  and  adapta- 
tion to  produce  activity  united  to  power;  the 
deer  to  produce  speed  ;  the  squirrel  to  produce 
agility  ;  the  horse  to  produce  a  combination  of 
strength  and  swiftness — each  and  all  show  the 
same  master  workmanship,  and  lead  us  to  the 
conclusion  that  none  of  them  could  have  exist- 
ed, had  they  not  been  created  by  some  being 
possessing  the  intelligence  and  power  which 
we  attribute  to  the  Deity. 


Chapter  XI. 

Existence  of  God  proved  in  the  structure  of  '/nan's  body. 

But  my  young  friends,  there  is  still  another 
proof  of  the  existence  of  the  Deity,  perhaps 
more  striking  and  more  calculated  to  affect  the 
mind  than  any  other;  this  is  deduced  from  a 
consideration  of  our  own  structure. 

Look  at  the  hand  !    What  a  curious  piece  of 


Skeleton  of  Man. 


Bones  of  the  Arm  and  Hand,  p.  47. 


parley's  farewell.  47 

mechanism  !  It  consists  of  bones  and  muscles, 
and  flesh  and  skin,  but  how  admirably  are  these 
all  adapted  to  their  purpose.  Where  can  you 
find  among  the  devices  and  contrivances  of 
man,  any  thing  so  wonderful  ? 

Look  at  the  foot — how  ingeniously  is  this 
contrived  !  Look  at  the  arm  :  what  piece  of 
mechanism  can  compare  with  it?  But  of  all 
parts  of  the  body,  the  eye  is  perhaps  the  most 
wonderful.  It  has  in  it,  a  lens,  like  that  of  a 
telescope,  through  which  the  rays  of  light 
pass  ;  and  at  the  back  of  the  eye  a  little  picture 
of  whatever  comes  before  the  eye,  is  formed. 
This  picture  falls  upon  a  nerve  which  lines  the 
interior  of  the  eye,  and  thus  it  is  we  see.  All 
this  contrivance  is  very  ingenious.  And  ob- 
serve how  the  eye  itself  is  placed  in  the  head. 
See  how  easily  it  turns  this  way  and  that ! 
Consider  these  things  and  tell  me,  who  but  a 
Superior  Being,  one  who  contrives,  one  who 
thinks,  could  have  made  man. 

Here  the  argument  with  James  and  Jane  end- 
ed, but  before  we  parted,  it  was  agreed  that  they 
should  come  again  soon,  and  hear  what  morel 
had  to  say  on  the  subject.  The  very  next  day, 
they  paid  me  a  visit  and  the  dialogue  took  place 
which  is  recorded  in  the  following  pages. 


48  NATURAL   RELIGION, 


Chapter    XL 

Proofs  of  the  existence  of  God  from  the  marks  of  arrangement  and 
in  the  structure  of  the  earth. 


James.  Well  Mr.  Parley,  you  have  remark- 
ed that  all  the  works  of  nature  prove  the  exis- 
tence of  God,  because  each  appears  to  be  made 
for  a  certain  object,  and  is  ingeniously  contriv- 
ed to  attain  it.  But  I  think  you  must  except 
the  Earth,  from  this  remark.  This  seems  to 
be  made  by  chance,  for  its  surface  is  thrown 
into  a  thousand  forms  of  hill  and  valley,  and 
the  stones  and  soils,  appear  to  be  composed 
without  design  of  any  kind. 

Parley.  Be  not  too  hasty  my  boy.  Before 
you  come  to  a  conclusion,  be  certain  that  your 
facts  are  right.  Is  it  true  that  the  substances 
of  which  the  earth  is  composed,  are  all  jumbled 
together  in  such  confusion,  as  to  show  no  marks 
of  plan  or  design?  Did  you  never  hear  of  the 
Giant's  Causeway  in  Ireland?  That  is  a  vast 
ledge,  along  the  border  of  the  sea,  composed 
of  stone  pillars,  of  six,  seven,  eight,  and  nine 
sides  and  cut  as  regularly  as  the  blocks  of  wood, 
used  for  paving  the  streets  of  New  York  and 
Boston. 


parley's  farewell.  49 

I  have  been  to  this  place,  and  seen  whole 
acres  covered  with  these  stones.  They  are 
set  one  upon  the  top  of  another,  and  are 
from  one  to  three  feet  long.  They  are  so 
closely  and  neatly  fitted  together  that  you  can 
hardly  run  a  knife  blade  between  them.  You 
can  see  them  extending  a  great  distance  under 
the  sea,  and  there  is  little  doubt  that  they  con- 
tinue for  two  or  three  hundred  miles,  for  at  an 
island  on  the  border  of  Scotland,  called  Staffa, 
you  see  the  rocks,  formed  in  the  same  way. 
There  is  a  vast  cave  there  called  Fingals  cave, 
the  rock  of  which  is  supported  by  these  columns 
of  stone. 

Nor  are  such  columns,  which  are  called 
basaltic,  very  uncommon.  They  are  found  in 
many  parts  of  the  world.  And  are  these  made 
by  chance?  Could  stones,  thrown  together, 
be  thus  regularly  formed  by  accident?  Cer- 
tainly not.  They  show  design,  plan,  con- 
trivance. They  show  that  an  intelligent,  think- 
ing being  was  concerned  in  their  arrangement, 
for  a  being  that  did  not  think,  or  plan,  or  con- 
trive, could  not  have  formed  them  thus. 

But  these  basaltic  rocks  are  by  no  means  the 
only  parts  of  the  earth  which  show  regularity 
4 


50  NATURAL    RELIGION. 

of  plan.  There  are  vast  beds  of  stone,  of  sand, 
and  clay,  formed  in  regular  layers,  one  repos- 
ing above  the  other,  and  fitted  to  each  other  like 
the  several  coats  of  an  onion.  The  slates  you 
use  at  school,  are  formed  in  this  way,  one  thin 
piece  lying  above  another,  forming  together  a 
mountain  of  slate,  all  divided  into  layers.  The 
slates  with  which  houses  are  roofed  are  of  the 
same  kind.  These  are  found  in  Vermont,  and 
many  other  parts  of  the  world. 

The  flagging  stones  obtained  in  Connecticut, 
and  used  in  many  of  our  cities,  are  taken  from 
vast  quarries,  where  the  rocks  are  found  regu- 
larly in  layers.  The  sandstone,  marble,  gran- 
ite, and  many  others,  used  in  building,  are 
taken  from  similar  beds,  where  the  stones  are 
found  in  layers  arranged  one  above  the  other. 

The  truth  is,  the  entire  structure  of  the  earth, 
when  examined  on  a  large  scale,  seems  to  be 
marked  with  plan  and  design,  in  the  arrange- 
ment of  its  stones  and  soils.  And  the  stones 
themselves,  when  broken  to  pieces,  are  most 
of  them  put  together  with  the  most  undeviating 
regularity.  They  consist  of  small  particles, 
and  these  are  arranged  in  rows,  as  nicely  as  the 
platoons   of  an   army.     And   what    is    indeed 


parley's  farewell.  51 

wonderful,  the  stones  of  the  same  kind,  whether 
in  Asia,  or  Africa,  or  Europe,  or  America, 
though  found  thousands  of  miles  apart,  have 
their  interior  particles  arranged  on  precisely 
the  same  plan,  and  in  the  same  order.  This 
fact  of  the  regular  arrangement  of  the  particles 
of  stones,  is  easily  proved  hy  examining  them 
with  a  magnifying  glass,  and  is  well  understood 
among  scientific  men. 

James.  I  see  Mr.  Parley  that  I  was  mis- 
taken, and  I  shall  remember  hereafter,  before 
I  speak  with  confidence,  to  be  sure  of  the 
accuracy  of  what  I  state, 

Parley.  You  are  quite  right.  I  do  not 
blame  you  for  your  ignorance,  for  many  per- 
sons older  than  yourself,  fall  into  worse  mis- 
takes than  yours  ;  and  I  have  remarked  that 
there  are  no  persons,  who  make  more  confident 
assertions  than  the  ignorant. 

Jane.  It  appears  to  me,  that  a  person  who 
fails  to  see  proofs  of  the  existence  of  a  good, 
wise  and  great  God,  in  the  works  of  nature, 
must  be  very  ignorant. 

Parley.  I  think  so  too,  unless  indeed  he 
is  very  wicked,  and  resists  the  truth  that  is 
set   before   him.     Truth  is  like  light,   and  a 


52  NATURAL   RELIGION. 

person  may  shut  his  eyes  to  it  and  not  see  it. 
So  a  person  with  the  evidence  of  God's  exist- 
ence before  his  eyes,  may  refuse  to  look  at  it, 
and  he  may  continue  in  a  state  of  voluntary 
darkness  and  blindness.  Such  a  man  may  say 
there  is  no  God,  and  he  may  perhaps  so  far 
abuse  his  reason  as  to  quench  the  light  of 
truth,  and  in  his  self-made  blindness,  he  may 
almost  believe  there  is  no  God.  Alas  !  how 
miserable  is  the  condition  of  such  a  man  ! 


Chapter  XIII. 

Proofs  of  a  Deity  afforded  by  Astronomy 

James.  It  has  just  struck  me  Mr.  Parley, 
that  Astronomy,  the  science  of  the  sun,  moon, 
and  stars,  affords  very  striking  proofs  of  the 
existence  of  a  Deity,  of  great  intelligence  and 
power. 

Parley.     I  think  so  too. 

Jane.  Will  you  explain  this  to  me  Mr.  Par- 
ley, for  I  know  very  little  about  Astronomy. 

Parley.  I  will  explain  it  with  pleasure.  I 
suppose,  Jane,  you  know  that  the  Earth  is  a 
vast  globe  or  ball,  and  that  it  turns  round  on 


parley's  farewell.  53 

its  axis  every  twenty-four  hours,  and  that  this 
makes  day  and  night. 

Jane.     Yes,  I  see  that. 

Parley.  Well,  now,  the  Sun  is  also  a  vast 
ball,  many  thousand  times  larger  than  this 
earth,  and  it  is  placed  at  the  distance  of  many 
millions  of  miles  from  the  earth.  The  earth 
wheels  around  the  Sun,  once  every  year, 
making  a  vast  circuit  in  its  course. 

Beside  this  earth,  there  are  several  other 
planets,  as  Jupiter,  Saturn,  Venus,  Mars,  Her- 
schel,  and  others,  which  are  all  the  time  per- 
forming their  journies  around  the  sun.  Some 
of  them  are  constantly  attended  by  little  worlds, 
like  our  moon,  called  satellites.  Jupiter  has 
four  of  them,  and  you  can  easily  see  them 
through  a  telescope.  Saturn  is  attended  by  a 
luminous  ring  extending  entirely  around  it,  and 
besides  this,  it  has  seven  moons. 

Now,  Jane,  think  of  this  vast  system  of 
worlds,  wheeling  day  and  night  through  the 
heavens — and  continuing  from  age  to  age,  to 
follow  their  destined  paths,  without  stoppage, 
delay,  or  deviation.  Who  swung  these  worlds 
in  the  air?.  Who  bid  them  take  up  their  line 
of  march?     Who  sustains  them  in  their  course? 


54.  NATURAL    RELIGION. 

Who  made  them?  What  manner  of  Being- 
must  it  be,  that  speaks  and  even  worlds  obey 
him? 

James.  This  reminds  me  of  what  I  heard 
mother  read  from  a  book  of  poetry — "  the  un- 
devout  astronomer  is  mad."  It  seems  to  me 
that  an  astronomer,  one  who  studies  the  heav- 
enly bodies,  must  be  constantly  filled  with  the 
idea  of  God. 

Parley.  And  so  he  should  be,  and  so 
should  we  all  be,  for  every  thing,  from  the 
head  of  wheat  to  the  worlds  on  high,  shows 
forth  his  handy  work.  I  have  recently  met 
with  some  verses  which  set  forth  the  fact  that 
God  made  all  things,  in  a  manner  likely  to 
make  an  impression  upon  your  mind.  They 
are  as  follows. 


Chapter  XIV. 

God  made  all  things. 


Seest  thou  the  spider,  weaving  now  his  net, 
So  nicely  made  and  all  so  nicely  set  ? 

Who  made  it  ? 

Hearest  thou  the  cricket,  singing  in  the  ground, 
When  evening  comes  and  all  is  still  around  .- 

Who  made  it  ? 


parley's   farewell.  55 

Seest  thou  the  insect,  dancing  in  the  air 
Of  joyous  summer,  free  from  every  care? 

Who  made  it  ? 

Seest  thou  the  violet,  springing  from  the  earth, 
Waked  like  a  blooming  infant  into  birth  ? 

Who  made  it  ? 

Seest  thou  the  bud,  on  yonder  bending  bower, 
Opening  its  leaves  and  putting  forth  its  flower  ? 

Who  made  it  ? 

Seest  thou  the  squirrel,  on  yon  tall  oak  tree, 
Gnawing  his  nut  or  sporting  merrily  ? 

Who  made  it  ? 

Seest  thou  the  bird,  that  swings  on  yonder  spray, 
Or  cleaves  the  air,  singing  some  roundelay  ? 

Who  made  it  ? 

Seest  thou  the  mountain,  lifting  high  its  head, 
And  with  a  glorious  robe  of  azure  spread  ? 

Who  made  it  ? 

Seest  thou  yon  river,  dashing  down  the  height, 
Its  waters  breaking  into  waves  of  light  ? 

Who  made  it  ? 

Seest  thou  yon  ocean,  with  its  breast  of  green, 
Its  depths  unfathomed,  and  its  shores  unseen? 

Who  made  it  ? 

Seest  thou  yon  orb  of  fire,  that  brings  the  morn, 
And,  parting,  leaves  us  wrapped  in  night  forlorn  ? 

Who  made  it  ? 


56  NATURAL    RELIGION. 


Seest  thou  yon  sky,  a  seeming-  sea  of  night, 
Where  stars  are  set  and  planets  wheel  their  flight  ? 

Who  made  it  ? 

Who  made  these  things,  and  all  this  rolling  earth? 
'T  was  God  alone  that  brought  them  into  birth; 
He,  who  the  spider  and  the  insect  made, 
Reared  the  blue  violet,  and  the  flower  arrayed; 
Poured  the  swift  river  clown  its  rocky  bed, 
Heaped  up  the  mountain,  and  the  ocean  spread 
Who  built  the  world  and  gave  it  day  and  night 
He  is  the  God  of  earth  and  heaven,  of  life  and  light ! 


Chapter   XY. 


Review  of  the  argument.     Existence  of  God  proved.     His  personality 
proved.     A  doubt  started. 

Some  days  after  the  preceding  dialogue  oc- 
curred, Jane  and  James  paid  me  a  visit,  agree- 
ably to  my  request,  and  I  reviewed  the  ground 
over  which  I  had  proceeded,  somewhat  as  fol- 
lows. 

Parley.  You  will  remark  my  young  friends, 
that  I  have  hitherto  confined  myself  chiefly  to 
the  proofs  of  the  existence  of  a  Deity,  derived 
from  an  examination  of  the  works  of  nature. 
My  object  has  been  to  show  that  every  where 
we    find    the    marks    of    plan,    design,    con- 


parley's    farewell.  57 

trivance  and  ingenuity.  The  trees,  plants,  flow- 
rs, the  whole  vegetable  kingdom,  is  full  of  proofs 
that  these  are  the  work  of  a  Being  who  forms 
plans,  and  who  knows  how  to  execute  them. 
The  animal  kingdom  attests  the  same  truth. 
Even  the  stars  are  witnesses  to  the  mighty 
revelation,  and  the  worlds  on  high  set  their 
eternal  seal  to  its  veracity. 

Here  then  is  conclusive  proof — proof  that  no 
honest  and  enlightened  mind  can  resist,  that 
there  is  a  God  and  that  he  has  a  personal 
existence  as  much  as  any  one  of  us.  We  have 
proved  that  God  thinks,  designs  and  executes  ; 
and  whoever  thinks,  designs  and  acts,  must 
have  individual,  personal  existence.  But  we 
may  carry  our  investigation  further.  We  have 
indeed  settled  the  reality  of  God's  existence, 
and  we  have  determined  his  personality  :  but 
having  learned  thus  much,  we  desire  to  know 
more.  We  desire  to  know  his  character  ; 
whether  he  is  a  wise  being,  a  good  being,  a 
powerful  being ;  and  though  these  points  have 
been  occasionally  touched  upon,  it  may  be  in- 
teresting to  study  into  his  works,  and  see  what 
further  light  these  may  throw  upon  this  and 
other  important  topics  connected  with  the  study 
of  God's  character. 


58  NATURAL   RELIGION. 

James.  I  shall  be  very  glad  to  hear  you, 
Mr.  Parley  :  but  will  you  allow  me  to  men- 
tion a  doubt  as  to  the  existence  of  a  God, 
which  another  boy  mentioned  to  me  7 

Parley.     Surely  ;   go  on. 

James.  Well,  I  had  been  talking  with 
Thomas  Doubty.  I  had  told  him,  as  well  as 
I  could,  all  you  had  said  about  the  proofs  of 
God's  existence.  He  then  told  me  that  his 
father  did  not  believe  in  a  God,  because  he  had 
never  seen  him,  and  Thomas  said  he  could  not 
believe  in  any  thing  that  could  not  be  seen. 

Jane.  Yes,  and  James  told  Thomas  that 
he  could  not  believe  in  the  existence  of  the  wind, 
then,  because  he  could  not  see  it. 

Parley.     And  what  did  Thomas  say  to  that? 

James.  He  said  we  could  see  the  trees 
move,  and  that  was  proof  that  the  wind  blew. 

Paisley.  And  the  trees  grow,  and  their 
growth  proves  the  existence  of  God,  as  much 
as  their  motion  proves  the  existence  of  wind. 
If  a  person  will  believe  the  existence  of  no 
power  which  cannot  be  seen,  then  he  cannot  be- 
lieve in  electricity,  which  causes  the  lightning, 
but  which  is  itself  invisible.  He  cannot  be- 
lieve   in    that    great    principle    of   gravitation, 


parley's    farewell.  59 

which  pervades  all  material  bodies,  which 
holds  the  earth  together,  and  which  keeps  us 
on  its  surface. 

The  fact  that  we  do  not  see  God,  is  no  proof 
that  he  does  not  exist — it  is  no  proof  that  he  is 
not  constantly  by  and  around  us.  The  princi- 
ple of  gravitation  is  ever  present  with  us  ;  we 
cannot  for  a  moment  escape  from  it.  If  we 
jump  up  into  the  air,  it  pulls  us  instantly  back 
to  the  earth.  Go  where  we  may,  it  is  within 
and  around  us.  Yet  we  have  no  eye  that  ena- 
bles us  to  see  it.  It  is  an  active  power,  and 
it  lays  upon  us  its  imperative  influence  ;  but  it 
is  still  invisible.  So  it  is  with  God.  He  is  an 
active  and  powerful  being ;  but  he  is  a  spirit, 
and  our  eye  is  not  fitted  to  perceive  and  appreci- 
ate his  presence. 

How  absurd,  then,  it  is,  to  doubt  the  exist- 
ence of  God,  because  we  cannot  see  him  ?  For 
the  same  reason,  the  blind  child  might  deny  the 
existence  of  his  father,  for  he  cannot  see  him. 

It  is  sufficient  for  us  that  the  proofs  of  God's 
existence  are  as  clear  as  they  could  be,  if  he 
was  manifest  to  our  senses.  The  visible  world 
speaks  of  God  through  the  organs  of  sight ;  the 
voices  of  birds  and  the  harmonies  of  nature  are 


60  NATURAL   RELIGION. 

eloquent  of  him  to  the  ear  ;  millions  of  flowers 
testify  of  him  by  their  exquisite  perfume.  Taste 
and  touch  add  their  testimony  to  his  wonderful 
works.  The  very  senses  are  addressed  by  all 
things  around  us,  and  made  to  lend  their  aid 
in  proof  of  the  existence  of  a  Deity. 


Chapter  XVI. 

The  unity  of  God  proved  from  the  unity  of  design  observable  through- 
out the  universe.* 

James.  Before  you  proceed,  Mr.  Parley, 
to  show  how  the  works  of  nature  prove  the 
wisdom  and  power  of  God,  may  I  ask  one 
question? 

Parley.     Certainly... 

James.  Well ;  what  I  desire  to  know  is, 
whether  there  may  not  be  several  Gods  ;  one 
for  instance  who  made  the  plants,  one  who 
made  the  quadrupeds,  one  who  made  the  in- 
sects, one  who  made  the  birds,  one  who  made 
the  mountains  and  rivers  and  seas,  and  one  who 
made  the  human  race? 


*  It  is  proper  to  say  that  the  substance  of  this  and  several  of  the 
succeeding  chapters,  is  taken  from  Paley. 


parley's  farewell.  61 

Parley.  This  question,  James,  has  entered 
into  many  wise  heads.  All  the  ancient  nations 
of  Europe  and  Asia  appear  to  have  believed  in 
the  existence  of  many  Gods.  In  ancient  Grece, 
a  deity  was  supposed  to  preside  over  every 
river  and  hill  and  mountain.  Almost  every 
object  in  nature  and  almost  every  human  pas- 
sion had  its  deity.  But  over  all  these,  there 
was  one  called  Jupiter  who  was  supposed  to  be 
the  supreme  governor  of  the  Universe. 

Nearly  the  same  belief  is  entertained  at  the 
present  day  in  Japan,  and  in  some  parts  of 
Asia  ;  but  a  little  reflection  will  satisfy  us  that 
there  cannot  be  a  multiplicity  of  Gods.  In 
the  first  place,  we  ought  to  adopt  no  belief  for 
which  we  can  produce  no  evidence,  and  there 
is  none  whatever  to  prove  that  there  is  more 
than  one  deity.  On  the  contrary,  all  nature 
seems  to  assure  us  that  there  is  but  one  God. 

'This  appears  from  the  unifromityof  plan  ob- 
servable in  the  universe,  which  is  itself  a  sys- 
tem, each  part  depending  upon  other  parts.  One 
principle  of  gravitation  causes  a  stone  to  drop 
towards  the  earth,  and  the  moon  to  wheel 
round  it.  One  law  of  attraction  carries  all  the 
planets  round   the  sun.     They  all   experience 


62  NATURAL   RELIGION. 

the  vicissitudes  of  day  and  night,  and  the  chan- 
ges of  the  seasons.  The  light  from  a  fixed  star 
affects  our  eyes  in  the  same  manner,  and  is  re- 
fracted and  reflected  according  to  the  same  laws 
as  the  light  of  a  candle.  The  velocity  of  the 
light  of  the  fixed  stars,  is  also  the  same  as  the 
velocity  of  the  light  of  the  sun,  reflected  from  the 
satellites  of  Jupiter.  The  heat  of  the  sun,  in 
kind,  differs  nothing  from  the  heat  of  a  common 
fire. 

In  our  own  globe,  unity  of  design  is  still 
more  manifest.  New  countries  are  continually 
discovered,  but  the  old  laws  of  nature  are  al- 
ways found  in  them  ;  new  plants,  perhaps,  or 
animals  are  found,  but  always  in  company  with 
plants  and  animals  which  we  already  know, 
and  always  possessing  the  same  general  proper- 
ties. We  never  get  among  such  original,  or 
totally  different  modes  of  existence,  as  to  indi- 
cate that  we  are  come  into  the  province  of  a 
different  Creator,  or  under  the  direction  of  a 
different  Will.  In  truth,  the  same  order  of 
things  attends  us  wherever  we  go.  The  ele- 
ments act  upon  one  another,  electricity  oper- 
ates, the  tides  rise  and  fall,  the  magnetic  nee- 
dle takes  its  position  in  one  region  of  the  earth 


parley's   farewell.  63 

as  well  as  another.  One  atmosphere  invests 
all  parts  of  the  globe  ;  one  sun  illuminates,  and 
one  moon  exerts  its  specific  attraction  upon  all 
parts. 

The  inspection  and  comparison  of  living 
forms,  add  to  this  argument,  and  examples  are 
at  hand  without  number.  Of  all  land  animals, 
the  structure  is  very  much  alike  ;  the  senses 
are  nearly  the  same  ;  their  natural  functions 
and  passions  nearly  the  same  ;  digestion,  nutri- 
tion, circulation  go  on  in  a  similar  manner  in  all. 
The  great  circulating  fluid  is  the  same  ;  for  I 
think  no  difference  has  been  discovered  in  the 
properties  of  blood,  from  whatever  animal  it 
may  be  drawn.  It  has  been  shown  that  the  blood 
of  one  animal  will  serve  for  another.  The  skel- 
etons of  the  larger  land  animals  show  particu- 
lar varieties,  but  they  still  have  a  great  general 
affinity.  The  resemblance  is  somewhat  less, 
yet  sufficiently  evident  between  quadrupeds  and 
birds. 

In  fishes,  which  belong  to  another  depart- 
ment of  nature,  the  points  of  comparison  be- 
come fewer.  But  we  never  lose  sight  of  an 
analogy  ;  we  still  meet  with  a  stomach,  a  liver, 
a  spine;   with  bile  and  blood  ;   with  teeth,  with 


64  NATURAL   RELIGION. 

eyes.  The  provinces  also  of  earth  and  water, 
are  connected  by  a  species  of  animals  that  in- 
habit both,  and  also,  by  a  large  tribe  of  aquatic 
animals,  which  closely  resemble  the  terrestrial 
in  their  structure — I  mean  the  cetacious  tribe, 
such  as  seals,  porpoises  and  whales,  which  have 
hot  blood,  respiring  lungs,  and  other  essential 
parts  like  those  of  land  animals.  This  simili- 
tude, surely,  bespeaks  the  same  creation  and 
the  same  Creator. 

Insects  and  shellfish  appear  to  differ  from 
other  classes  of  animals  the  most  widely  of 
any.  Yet  even  here,  there  exists  a  general  re- 
lation of  a  peculiar  kind.  In  other  animals, 
the  bones  to  which  the  muscles  are  attached, 
lie  within  the  body,  in  insects  and  shellfish, 
they  lie  on  the  outside  of  it.  The  shell  of  a 
lobster  performs  to  the  animal  the  office  of  a 
bone.  The  crust  of  an  insect  is  its  shell,  and 
answers  the  like  purpose.  The  shell  also  of 
an  oyster  stands  in  the  place  of  a  bone  ;  the 
muscles  being  fixed  to  it,  in  the  same  manner, 
as,  in  other  animals  they  are  fixed  to  the  bones  : 
all  this,  under  wonderful  varieties,  indeed, 
confesses  an  imitation,  a  remembrance,  a  carry- 
ing on,  of  the  same  plan. 


parley's  farewell.  65 

The  observations  here  made  are  equally  ap- 
plicable to  plants,  but  it  is  unnecessary  to  pur- 
sue the  investigation  further.  I  have  said 
enough  to  show  that  there  is  a  harmony  of  de- 
sign and  plan  throughout  the  universe,  which 
is  utterly  incompatible  with  the  idea  of  seper- 
ate  and  independent  Creators.  Were  there 
such,  the  world  would  exhibit  contradictions 
and  inconsistencies.  One  part  would  be  at 
variance  with  another  ;  one  design  would 
thwart  another  ;  but  as  all  unite  harmoniously 
to  constitute  a  consistent  system,  we  may  safe- 
ly and  certainly  conclude  that  all  created  things 
are  the  result  of  one  Mind — one  God. 


Chapter  XVII. 


Skill  of  the    Creator  illustrated  from   the  mechanical   structure  of 
the  human  body  :  the  heart  and  spine  ;    the  circulation  of  the  blood. 

James.  I  am  very  much  obliged  to  you, 
Mr.  Parley,  for  having  answered  my  question. 
You  have  fully  satisfied  me  that  there  is  but 
one  God.  I  shall  be  glad  now  to  hear  you 
speak  of  his  wisdom  and  power  as  shown  by 
his  works. 

5 


66  NATURAL   RELIGION. 

Parky.  I  shall  do  it  with  pleasure,  but  I 
must  remind  you  that  in  proving  the  existence 
of  God,  I  have  already  spoken  of  many  things 
which  displayed  wonderful  ingenuity  of  contri- 
vance, and  that  at  the  same  time  that  these 
prove  God's  existence,  they  also  attest  his 
wisdom  and  his  power.  In  every  department 
of  nature,  the  mineral,  vegetable  and  animal, 
there  are  contrivances  which  no  human  art  can 
rival.  It  has  been  before  said,  that  man  may 
make  imitations,  but  he  can  do  no  more. 

But  in  order  to  render  this  superior  skill  of  the 
Creator  more  palpable,  let  us  examine  one  or  two 
mechanical  contrivances  in  the  structure  of  an- 
imals. We  will  select  as  our  first  instance  the 
human  spine  or  back-bone.  This  consists  of 
twenty-four  bones,  joined  and  compacted  to- 
gether in  the  most  wonderful  manner.  It  is  so 
contrived  that  while  it  is  firm  and  enables  the 
body  to  support  an  erect  position,  it  is  at  the 
same  time  flexible,  so  as  to  bend  in  all  direc- 
tions. No  human  art  has  ever  been  able  to 
contrive  a  chain,  that  can  perform  these  double 
offices.  Here  we  see  that  in  mere  mechanical 
contrivance,  the  works  of  God  defv  competition 
from  man. 


The  Human  Spine  and  Ribs,  page  (37. 


67 

But  this  is  not  all.  The  spine  has  still  an- 
other office  to  perform.  In  the  centre  of 
this  chain  of  twenty-four  bones,  and  passing 
through  them  all,  is  a  tube  containing  the  spi- 
nal nerve.  This  extends  from  the  brain  through 
the  back,  and  communicates  with  every  part  of 
the  body  by  a  thousand  small  pipes  which  have 
the  name  of  nerves. 

Beside  all  this,  the  spine  is  to  be  so  adjusted 
that  the  ribs  may  be  fastened  to  it,  as  well  as 
the  legs  and  arms  ;  and  finally  ;  to  this  the  va- 
rious muscles  which  enable  the  limbs  and  body 
to  move,  are  to  be  fastened. 

Now  suppose  that  an  ingenious  mechanic 
were  to  undertake  to  construct  an  artificial 
skeleton  in  imitation  of  that  which  belongs  to 
man,  would  it  not  be  impossible  for  him  to 
accomplish  the  task  ;  and  would  he  not  be  com- 
pelled to  give  it  up  in  despair  ?  Let  us  con- 
sider, that  we  only  ask  of  the  human  archi- 
tect an  imitation,  and  that  even  this  is  beyond 
his  ability.  How  great  then  must  be  the  wis- 
dom and  power  of  that  Superior  Architect,  who 
not  only  made,  but  designed  and  contrived  his 
works,  and  not  only  designed  and  contrived  them, 
but  furnished  the  very  materials  from  his  own 


68  NATURAL    RELIGION. 

manufactory — the    bones,    the    muscles,     the 
nerves  and  the  fluids  necessary  for  his  purpose! 

Let  us  take  another  illustration  of  the  wis- 
dom and  power  of  God,  as  displayed  in  animal 
mechanism.  It  is  the  design  of  the  Creator 
that  the  blood  shall  be  distributed  throughout 
the  body,  and  that  this  shall  be  essential  to 
life.  The  body  is  therefore  provided  with  two 
systems  of  blood  vessels — arteries  and  veins  ; 
the  first  to  carry  the  blood  out  from  the  heart, 
and  the  latter  to  bring  it  back. 

These  tubes  are  wonderfully  contrived  and 
distributed  over  the  body,  and  the  blood  which 
is  to  pass  through  them,  is  furnished  by  means 
equally  ingenious  and  wonderful.  But  what 
machinery  can  be  devised  to  receive  the  blood 
from  the  veins  and  force  it  through  the  arteries 
and  throughout  the  system?  The  heart  is  des- 
tined to  perform  this  work.  This  is  a  hollow 
muscle  in  the  centre  of  the  body,  surrounded 
with  spiral  fibres,  running  in  both  directions,  the 
layers  crossing  and  interlacing  each  other.  By 
a  contraction  of  these  spiral  fibres,  the  hollow 
muscle  is  compressed,  and  whatever  fluid  may 
be  in  it,  is  squeezed  out  from  the  cavity  within. 
By  a  relaxation  of  the  spiral  fibres,  the  cavities 
in  the  hollow  muscle  are  prepared  to  admit  any 


Veins  of  the  Human  Body.  Arteries  of  the  Human  Body,  p   63. 


The  Human  Heart. 


R  Vy  Right  cavity  or  ventricle  ;  L  V,  the  left  ventricle  ;  r  I, 
right  lungs  ;  I Z,  left  lungs  ;  a,  aorta  ;  Vt  large  veins  which  bring 
the  blood  to  the  heart. 


parley's   farewell.  69 

fluid  that  may  be  poured  into  it.  Into  these 
cavities  the  great  trunks  or  pipes  of  the  arteries 
and  veins  are  inserted — the  one  to  carry  out 
the  blood,  and  the  other  to  return  it. 

Every  time  that  the  heart  beats,  a  contrac- 
tion of  the  spiral  fibres  takes  place,  and  the 
blood  is  sent  through  the  arteries,  by  the  force 
of  the  stroke,  as  water  gushes  through  a  syr- 
inge ;  and  exactly  at  the  same  time,  an  equal 
proportion  is  received  from  the  veins.  Thus, 
at  every  pulse,  about  two  spoons  full  of  blood 
are  sent  out  from  the  human  heart,  through  the 
arteries,  and  the  same  quantity  is  received  from 
the  veins.  It  is  said  that  each  ventricle  of  the 
heart  will  contain  an  ounce  of  blood.  The 
heart  contracts  4000  times  in  an  hour,  from 
which  it  appears  that  4000  ounces,  or  250 
pounds  of  blood  pass  through  the  heart  every 
hour. 

The  whole  mass  of  blood  in  the  body  of  a 
grown  person  is  about  twenty  five  pounds,  so 
that  a  quantity  equal  to  the  whole  mass,  passes 
through  the  heart  twelve  times  in  an  hour, 
which  is  about  once  every  six  minutes.  Such  is 
the  operation  of  the  heart  in  the  human  body  ; 
but  consider  what  it  must  be  in  the  larger  ani- 


70  NATURAL    RELIGION. 

mals,  as  the  elephant  or  the  whale.  In  the 
latter,  the  tube  through  which  the  blood  is 
forced  into  the  arteries,  called  the  aorta,  is  a 
foot  in  diameter,  and  ten  or  fifteen  gallons  ot 
blood  are  thrown  out  of  the  heart,  at  every 
stroke,  and  it  rushes  with  a  velocity  like  that 
of  water  through  the  sluice  of  a  mill.  The 
whole  idea  fills  the  mind  with  wonder,  and  we 
cannot  but  look  up  with  awe  to  that  Being 
whose  works  display  such  evidence  of  wisdom 
and  power. 


Chapter  XVIII. 


The  wisdom  of  the  Creator  shown  by  the  peculiar  and  yet  suitable  or- 
ganization of  certain  animals. 

Along  each  side  of  the  neck  of  larger  quad- 
rupeds is  a  stiff  strong  ligament,  which  butchers 
call  the  pax  wax.  We  often  see  it  in  a  piece 
of  roast  beef.  It  is  a  powerful  tape,  braced 
from  the  head  to  the  back,  and  its  office  is  to 
support  the  weight  of  the  head,  which  it  is  ex- 
actly suited  to  fulfil. 

The  head  of  an  ox  is  a  heavy  weight  act- 
ing at  the  end  of  a  long  lever,  and  but  for  this 


parley's  farewell.  71 

support,  would  be  very  difficult  and  tedious  to 
carry.  But  by  this  brace,  it  is  supported  with 
ease.  No  similar  organ  is  found  in  man,  for  his 
erect  position  renders  such  a  provision  unneces- 
sary. This  peculiar  organization  is  limited  to 
quadrupeds  ;  and  it  shows  that  the  Creator  sees 
and  knows  and  provides  for,  with  admirable  in- 
genuity, the  wants  of  his  creatures. 

The  oil  with  which  birds  preserve  their  feath- 
ers, and  the  organ  which  supplies  it,  are  pe- 
culiar provisions  of  the  Deity  for  the  feather- 
ed creation.  On  each  side  of  the  rump  of 
birds,  is  observed  a  small  protuberance,  yielding 
a  substance  resembling  butter,  which  runs  out 
when  the  bird  presses  it  with  its  bill.  With 
this  ointment  the  bird  dresses  its  coat,  as  often 
as  any  part  of  its  feathers  may  require  it.  Noth- 
ing similar  to  this  oil  is  found  upon  unfeather- 
ed  animals.  If  this  provision  were  accidental 
in  birds,  why  should  it  not  also  be  found  in 
beasts  ? 

The  airbladder  of  a  fish  affords  another  strik- 
ing instance  of  contrivance.  The  use  of  the 
organ  is  to  sustain,  and  also  to  elevate  or  de- 
press the  body  of  the  fish,  in  the  water.  This 
is  done  in  the  following  manner.     When  the 


12  NATURAL    RELIGION. 

bladder  contained  in  the  body  of  the  fish  is  con- 
tracted, the  bulk  of  the  fish  is  also  contracted 
and  becomes  heavier  as  compared  with  the  wa- 
ter, and  accordingly,  it  descends.  On  the  con- 
trary, when  the  bladder  is  expanded,  the  bulk 
of  the  fish  is  greater  and  comparatively  lighter, 
and  the  fish  rises.  This  power  has  been  prov- 
ed by  observing  that  when  the  bladder  is  burst, 
the  fish  grovels  at  the  bottom  ;  and  also  that 
flounders,  soles  and  skates,  which  have  no  air 
bladder,  seldom  rise  in  the  water,  and  if  they 
do,  it  costs  them  a  great  effort.  We  do  not 
see  by  what  method  an  animal,  which  lives  con- 
stantly in  the  water,  is  able  to  supply  a  repos- 
itory of  air,  but  the  Creator  of  fishes  has  accom- 
plished this  object,  though  we  cannot  tell  the 
means. 

These  examples  show  the  attention  paid 
by  the  Creator  to  three  departments  of  animal 
nature.  The  next  example  of  his  contrivance, 
belonging  to  a  large  tribe  of  animals,  is  the 
poisonous  tooth  of  serpents.  The  fang  of  the 
viper  is  a  clear  and  curious  example  of  me- 
chanical ingenuity.  It  is  a  perforated  tooth, 
loose  at  the  root ;  in  its  quiet  state,  lying  flat 
upon  the  jaw,  but  furnished  with  a  muscle, 


parley's    farewell.  73 

which,  with  a  jerk  as  it  were  of  a  string,  sud- 
denly erects  it  at  the  pleasure  of  the  animal. 
Under  the  tooth,  close  to  its  root,  and  commu- 
nicating with  the  hole  made  for  the  purpose, 
lies  a  small  bag,  containing  the  venom.  When 
the  fang  is  raised,  the  jaw  closes,  and  presses 
against  the  bag  ;  and  this  forces  out  the  fluid 
through  the  tube  in  the  middle  of  the  tooth. 
What  better  apparatus  could  be  devised  for  the 
double  purpose  of  inflicting  the  wound,  and 
throwing  in  the  poison  ?  Yet  although  lodged 
in  the  mouth  of  the  animal,  it  is  so  constituted, 
as  not  to  interfere  with  the  animal's  office  of 
seeking  its  food.  None  of  the  harmless  ser- 
pents have  these  fangs,  but  their  teeth  are  all 
of  an  equal  length,  and  fixed  firmly  in  the  jaw. 
The  bag  of  the  oppossum  is  another  curious 
contrivance.  A  false  skin  under  the  body  of 
the  female  oppossum  forms  a  pouch  in  which 
the  young  are  received  when  they  are  born  ; 
here  they  are  fed  and  nursed ;  in  this  they  are 
transported  by  the  mother  from  place  to  place, 
at  liberty  to  run  in  and  out,  and  find  a  refuge 
there  from  surprise  or  danger.  It  is  their  cra- 
dle, their  conveyance  and  their  asylum.  This 
pouch  is  provided  with  muscles  to  open  and 


74  NATURAL   RELIGION. 

shut  the  aperture,  which  is  done  in  the  most 
exact  manner.  Could  this  peculiar  organ  have 
been  constructed  in  any  way  but  by  the  design 
of  the  Creator  ? 

The  black  skimmer  of  the  seas,  is  a  kind  of 
gull,  who  gets  his  living  from  the  deep,  in  a 
most  curious  manner.  He  has  immense  pow- 
ers of  flight,  and  seems  to  be  capable  of  sus- 
taining himself  on  the  wing,  for  hours  and  per- 
haps for  days.  He  skims  along  over  the  deep, 
keeping  his  lower  jaw  or  mandible  in  the  water, 
with  which  he  occasionally  scoops  up  a  fish 
that  happens  to  come  in  his  way.  To  fit  him 
for  this  peculiar  mode  of  getting  a  livelihood, 
his  under  jaw.  is  shaped  like  a  paper  cutter,  and 
is  more  than  an  inch  longer  than  the  upper 
one.  When  a  fish  is  taken,  it  is  slipped  along 
toward  the  throat,  and  there  held  in  the  bill  till 
the  bird  has  time  to  devour  it.  What  a  curi- 
ous adaptation  do  we  here  find,  of  tools  to  the 
work  that  is  to  be  done  ?  This  bird  is  to  get 
his  food  by  skimming  the  seas,  and  he  has  a 
peculiar  tool  for  the  purpose  ;  and  to  accommo- 
date him,  a  departure  from  the  structure  of  all 
other  birds  is  adopted,  and  the  lower  mandible, 
usually  the  shortest,  is  here  made  the  longest. 


Black  Skimmer  of  the  Seas,  p.  74. 


parley's  farewell.  75 

In  the  owl,  we  observe  a  remarkable  adapta- 
tion of  structure  to  vocation.  This  bird  is 
made  to  lead  the  life  of  a  thief,  and  to  steal 
upon  its  prey  in  the  darkness  and  the  stillness 
of  night.  His  eyes  are  therefore  so  con- 
structed that,  while  he  can  hardly  see  by  day, 
he  can  see  distinctly  at  night.  But  there  is 
another  peculiar,  yet  suitable  contrivance,  less 
obvious,  but  even  more  curious.  The  plumage 
of  the  owl  is  remarkably  soft,  full,  and  downy. 
Every  part  of  the  body,  and  even  the  head  and 
legs,  are  covered  with  long,  yielding  feathers. 
And  why  is  this  1  So  that  the  bird  may  winnow 
the  air  on  a  silent  wing,  and  approach  its  vic- 
tim not  unseen  only,  but  unheard.  How  dif- 
ferent is  the  noiseless,  stealthy  flight  of  an  owl 
from  the  whistling  rush  of  a  pigeon,  or  the 
whirring  of  a  partridge  ;  and  how  admirably 
does  this  peculiarity  qualify  the  bird  to  follow 
its  trade ! 

Wilson,  the  American  ornithologist,  remarks 
that  the  females  of  most  species  of  birds  are 
less  gaudily  dressed  than  the  males  ;  and  that 
we  here  see  a  wise  provision  of  the  Creator,  as 
by  this  means,  the  females,  who  are  peculiarly 
destined  to   watch    over   the   young,  are    less 


76  NATURAL   RELIGION. 

likely  to  be  objects  of  pursuit  to  the  hawk  and 
the  sportsman.  Being  of  more  sober  hues, 
they  are  less  conspicuous,  and  may  more  easily 
shelter  themselves  from  attack  amid  the  leaves 
and  bushes. 

Certain  birds  have  a  particular  structure  in 
the  claw,  which  fits  them  for  their  peculiar 
mode  of  life.  The  middle  claw  of  the  heron 
and  cormorant,  is  toothed  and  notched  like  a 
saw.  These  birds  are  great  fishers,  and  these 
notches  assist  them  in  holding  their  slippery 
prey.  The  use  and  design  of  this  is  evident. 
Some  birds  that  live  on  fish  have  these  notches 
in  their  bills,  and  for  the  same  purpose.  The 
gannet,  or  soland  goose,  has  the  edges  of  its  bill 
irregularly  jagged,  that  it  may  hold  its  prey 
the  firmer.  Now  this  structure  cannot  surely 
arise  from  the  manner  of  employing  the  part,  as 
the  smooth  surfaces  and  soft  flesh  of  fish  is  less 
likely  to  notch  the  bills  of  birds  than  the  hard 
substances  upon  which  many  other  species  feed. 
This  shows  then,  the  formation  of  the  bill  in  these 
cases,  to  be  matter  of  design  and  not  accident. 

The  stomach  of  the  camel  is  well  known  to 
retain  large  quantities  of  water,  unchanged  for 
a  considerable  length  of  time.     This  quality  fits 


parley's  farewell.  77 

it  for  living  in  the  desert,  where  there  is  no 
water,  and  where,  were  it  not  for  this  provision, 
the  animal  could  not  live.  A  number  of  bags, 
sometimes  thirty,  are  contained  in  the  second 
stomach,  which,  after  the  animal  has  drank  a 
large  quantity  of  water,  are  filled  ;  and  these 
bags  are  afterwards  squeezed  by  a  set  of  mus- 
cles made  for  the  purpose,  and  the  contents 
carried  into  the  stomach,  whenever  thirst  impels 
the  animal  to  put  the  muscles  in  motion  ! 

The  tongue  of  the  woodpecker  is  a  very  sin- 
gular contrivance.  It  is  a  particular  instru- 
ment for  a  particular  use  ;  and  what  else  but 
design  could  ever  produce  it  ?  The  wood- 
pecker lives  chiefly  upon  insects,  lodged  in 
the  bodies  of  decaying  trees.  For  the  purpose 
of  boring  into  wood,  it  is  furnished  with  a  straight, 
hard,  sharp  bill.  When  by  means  of  this 
piercer,  it  has  reached  the  cells  of  the  insects, 
then  comes  the  office  of  the  tongue.  This  is 
three  or  four  inches  long,  tipped  with  a  stiff, 
sharp,  bony  thorn,  and  what  is  most  remarka- 
ble, this  tip  is  jagged  on  each  side,  like  the  barb 
of  a  hook.  The  bird  having  exposed  the 
retreats  of  the  insects  by  the  assistance  of  its 
bill,  with  amotion  inconceivably  quick,  launches 


78  NATURAL    RELIGION. 

this  long  tongue  at  them,  runs  them  through 
with  the  barbed  needle  upon  the  end,  and  thus 
draws  its  prey  within  its  mouth.  If  this  be  not 
mechanism,  what  is  1  How  did  the  tongue 
get  its  barb  and  its  hard  tip  ?  They  are  decid- 
edly proofs  of  mechanical  organization,  and  of 
the  skill  in  the  Creator  in  providing  for  his 
creatures. 


Chapter    XIX. 


Wisdom  of  the  Deity  proved  from  the  preparations  hefore  hand  for  the 
wants  of  animals,  found  in  the  contrivances  of  Nature  :  also  by  the  fitness  and 
adaptation  of  some  parts  of  animals  to  other  pj arts. 

The  wisdom  of  the  Creator  is  clearly  shown 
in  that  foresight  by  which  provision  is  made  for 
such  wants  of  his  creatures,  as  may  arise  from 
their  peculiar  condition.  The  human  teeth 
afford  a  striking  instance  of  this.  The  infant 
is  to  live  by  milk  taken  from  its  mother,  and  it 
can  take  its  nourishment  in,  without  teeth,  much 
more  conveniently  to  itself  and  its  nurse,  than 
with  them.  Accordingly  it  has  no  teeth — nor 
do  they  come  till  about  the  time  that  it  takes 
other  food  that  may   require  teeth.     We  see 


parley's   farewell.  79 

the  same  careful  foresight  in  providing  that 
the  horns  of  calves  and  lambs  do  not  grow  till 
they  have  done  sucking,  as  they  would  be  in 
the  way,  in  performing  that  operation. 

But  in  regard  to  the  human  teeth,  a  still  fur- 
ther prospective  contrivance  is  made,  at  the  yery 
beginning.  The  jaw  of  a  grown  person  is 
much  larger  than  that  of  an  infant,  and  the  first 
teeth  are  therefore  entirely  too  small  to  fill  the 
jaw  of  an  adult.  It  is  accordingly  provided, 
that  at  the  age  of  eight  or  ten  years,  the  first  set 
of  teeth  shall  be  shed,  and  larger  ones  come  in 
their  place.  And  the  preparation  for  them  is 
made  at  the  outset,  a  row  of  teeth  being 
actually  set  in  below  the  first,  ready  to  grow 
when  these  are  gone  ! 

The  providing  of  milk  for  young  animals  is 
another  admirable  proof  of  the  designing  wis- 
dom of  the  Creator.  Milk  is  a  fluid  of  a  very 
nutritious  quality,  and  no  art  of  man  can  make 
it.  As  soon  as  the  young  are  produced,  the 
milk  is  ready  for  it,  and  not  before.  And  how 
wonderful,  how  ingenious,  is  the  whole  contri- 
vance by  which  young  animals  are  provided  with 
food,  in  a  manner  the  most  curious,  and  of  a 
kind  the  most  suitable  ! 


80  NATURAL   RELIGION. 

The  wisdom  of  the  Creator  is  also  shown  by 
the  relation  which  the  structure  of  animals 
bears  to  their  mode  of  life. 

The  instances  of  this  kind  are  numerous. 
There  is  a  curious  resemblance  between  the 
stomach  of  a  hen  and  a  corn  mill ;  the  crop 
answering  to  the  hopper,  and  the  gizzard  to 
the  stones  which  crush  the  corn.  But  the  most 
interesting  point  of  resemblance  is  this  :  to  pre- 
vent too  much  corn  from  going  into  the  stones 
at  once,  a  receiver  is  placed  between  them  and 
the  hopper,  so  that  it  may  be  dribbled  out  just 
as  fast  as  is  required.  The  same  process  takes 
place  in  the  hen,  for  though  the  crop  may  be 
filled,  its  food  only  enters  the  gizzard  gradu- 
ally, and  as  fast  as  that  is  able  to  digest  it. 

Another  instance  of  obvious  fitness  and  adap- 
tation of  one  part  to  another,  is  furnished  in 
birds  of  prey.  Owls,  hawks,  eagles,  &c,  by 
their  talons  and  beaks,  are  qualified  to  seize  and 
devour  other  birds  and  quadrupeds  ;  and  ac- 
cordingly the  gastric  juice  in  the  stomach  of 
these  birds,  will  act  upon  or  digest  flesh,  but 
it  will  not  digest  seeds  or  grasses,  or  vegetables 
of  any  kind.  On  the  other  hand,  the  mouth  of 
the  ox  and  sheep  is  suited  to  the  cropping  of 


parley's  farewell.  81 

herbage  ;  and  accordingly  we  find  the  gastric 
juices  of  their  stomachs  will  digest  vegetable 
food,  and  not  flesh  ! 

There  is  another  instance  of  strong  fitness 
in  a  provision  of  nature,  which  marks  the  intel- 
ligence of  the  Creator,  and  that  is,  that  the 
eyes  of  all  animals  are  placed  in  front,  in  the 
direction  in  which  the  legs  move,  and  the 
hands  work ;  and  therefore  where  they  are 
most  useful.  How  awkward  would  it  be  for  us, 
if  our  eyes  were  in  the  back  of  the  head  !  How 
comparatively  useless  would  the  eyes  of  quad- 
rupeds be,  if  placed  behind  ! 

Nature  is  full  of  such  instances  as  these  I 
have  mentioned,  all  setting  forth  the  intelligence 
and  wisdom  of  the  Creator  ;  and  not  only  dis- 
playing the  marks  of  a  designing  and  intelli- 
gent Mind,  but  intelligence  in  contriving  and 
power  in  executing,  which  know  no  bounds. 
No  obstacle  seems  to  be  presented  that  is  not 
surmounted,  and  no  contrivance  to  accomplish 
an  object  seems  to  be  adopted,  that  is  not,  all 
things  considered,  the  best  that  could  be  de- 
vised. 


6 


82  NATURAL   RELIGION. 


Chapter    XX. 

Wisdom  of  the  Creator  proved  by  the  means  adopted  to  compensate  for 
defects  in  animal  organization. 

Another  fertile  and  interesting  source  of  evi- 
dence of  the  wisdom  of  God,  is  found  in  the 
contrivances  resorted  to  by  the  Creator,  to  com- 
pensate his  creatures  for  certain  defects  in  their 
organization.  Thus  the  short  neck  of  the  ele- 
phant  is  compensated  by  the  admirable  device 
of  a  proboscis,  one  of  the  most  complicated  and 
ingenious,  but  successful  expedients  of  nature. 

The  bat  has  a  clumsy  foot  and  leg,  but  to 
compensate  for  this,  he  is  supplied  with  a  hook 
on  his  wing,  by  which  he  suspends  himself  to  a 
beam,  or  to  the  sides  of  rocks,  and  in  this  way 
he  usually  obtains  his  sleep.  The  crane,  the 
heron,  the  bittern  are  destined  to  live  upon  fish, 
yet  they  cannot  swim.  To  make  up  for  this 
deficiency  they  are  provided  with  long  legs  for 
wading,  or  long  bills  for  groping,  and  some- 
times with  both. 

The  common  parrot  would  have  an  inconven- 
ience in  the  very  hooked  shape  of  its  upper  jaw, 


Bats,  p.  82. 


parley's    farewell.  83 

or  mandible,  if  like  that  of  other  birds,  it  was 
stationary,  for  in  this  case  it  could  hardly  open 
its  mouth  to  take  its  food.  But  this  hook  being 
wanted  by  the  parrot  to  climb  and  suspend  it- 
self with,  to  remedy  the  evil  above  mentioned, 
this  upper  mandible  is  capable  of  being  ele- 
vated or  depressed  at  pleasure. 

There  is  a  grub  called  the  glow  worm,  that 
gives  out  a  phosphoric  light  in  the  darkness. 
Why  is  this  ?  That  her  mate  may  find  her, 
for  while  she  is  a  worm,  he  is  a  fly  ;  while  she 
is  on  the  earth,  he  is  in  the  air.  They  would 
not  be  likely  to  meet  therefore,  if  some  extra- 
ordinary means  of  uniting  them  was  not  re- 
sorted to  ;  but  this,  Nature  has  foreseen  and 
provided  for. 

The  spider's  web  is  a  compensating  contri- 
vance, of  a  very  ingenious  character.  This 
creature  is  made  to  feed  on  flies  ;  yet  how  was 
it  to  catch  them,  for  it  had  no  wings  ?  This 
might  seem  to  be  a  case  of  difficulty,  but  the 
web  is  a  net,  and  the  spider  is  not  only  taught 
how  to  weave  it,  but  his  body  furnishes  the 
thread  !  How  ingenious,  how  wonderful,  how 
multiplied,  are  the  resources  of  the  God  of 
Nature  ! 


84  NATURAL   RELIGION. 

In  many  species  of  insects,  the  eye  is  fixed, 
and  cannot  be  turned  in  its  socket.  To  sup- 
ply this  great  defect,  the  eye  is  a  multiplying 
glass,  with  a  lens  looking  in  every  direction,  and 
showing  every  object  that  may  be  near.  Thus, 
what  seemed  at  first  a  privation,  by  this  curious 
and  interesting  expedient,  is  made  to  be  an 
advantage,  as  an  eye  thus  constructed  seems 
better  adapted  to  the  wants  of  these  creatures 
than  any  other.  The  common  fly  is  said  to 
have  four  thousand  lenses  in  each  eye,  and  the 
butterfly  thirty  thousand  ! 

The  neck  of  the  chameleon  is  stiff,  and  can- 
not be  turned  ;  how  then  is  he  to  look  about 
himself  ?  It  would  puzzle  most  of  us  to  con- 
trive a  remedy  for  this  difficulty  ;  but  Nature 
seems  never  at  a  loss.  The  eye  ball  stands  out 
so  far  that  more  than  half  of  it  projects  from 
the  head  ;  and  the  muscles  operate  so  curiously 
that  the  pupil  can  be  turned  in  any  direction. 
Thus  the  chameleon,  who  cannot  bend  his  neck, 
can  do  with  facility  what  is  difficult  for  most 
other  animals — he  can  look  backwards  even 
without  turning  his  body  ! 


parley's    farewell.  85 


Chapter  XXI. 

The  argument  continued. 

If  we  were  to  look  upon  a  snail,  and  observe 
that  it  has  neither  wings  nor  feet,  it  would 
seem  to  be  destitute  of  the  common  advantages 
bestowed  upon  creatures  of  this  class.  But  its 
Creator  has  made  up  its  deficiency  in  a  very 
surprising  manner.  It  is  endowed  with  a  vis- 
cid or  sticky  humor,  which  adheres  to  the 
stones,  leaves,  plants  and  fruits,  and  enables  it 
to  climb  wherever  it  desires  to  go. 

A  mussel,  which  might  seem  to  be  at  the 
mercy  of  every  wave,  has  the  power  of  spinning 
long  threads,  by  which  it  moors  itself  to  a  rock 
or  timber,  as  safely  as  a  ship  at  anchor. 

Birds  have  no  teeth.  What  then  are  the  fowls 
that  feed  on  grain — liens,  turkeys,  ducks,  geese, 
pigeons  &c.  to  do  ?  for  they  surely  must  have 
some  means  of  grinding  their  food.  All  these  are 
supplied  by  a  peculiar  and  powerful  muscle, 
called  the  gizzard  ;  the  inner  coats  of  this  are 
furnished  with  rough  plates,  which  break  and 
grind  the  food,  as  effectually  as  a  coffee-mill 
would  do.     Let  the  reader  reflect  upon  this  ; 


86  NATURAL    RELIGION. 

no  animal  has  a  gizzard  that  has  teeth,  for  then 
it  is  not  wanted  ;  but  those  which  have  not 
teeth  and  require  grinding  machinery  for  their 
food,  are  supplied  with  it !  Recollect,  too,  that 
birds  of  prey  that  live  on  flesh,  have  no  gizzard, 
for  their  food  does  not  require  to  be  ground  in 
a  mill ! 

Many  animals,  such  as  worms,  are  entirely 
without  feet.  How  is  this  destitution  to  be  com- 
pensated? These  creatures  are  enabled  to  creep 
forward  by  means  of  rings  strung  together  by 
muscles  which  contract  and  expand,  or  are  drawn 
up  and  stretched  out  at  the  pleasure  of  the  animal. 
Thus  the  meanest  creature  is  a  collection  of 
wonders,  and  demonstrates  as  clearly  as  the 
highest  of  Nature's  works,  the  wisdom,  power 
and  resources  of  the  Creator. 


Chapter   XXII. 

Proofs  of  the   Wisdom  of  the  Creator  furnished  by  the  relation  of  the 
structure  of  animals  to  inanimate  Nature. 

One  of  the  first  proofs  of  this  kind  that  strikes 
us,  is  in  the  adaptation  of  the  wings  of  birds, 


parley's    farewell.  87 

to  flying  in  the  air  ;  of  fishes  to  swimming  in 
the  water,  and  of  other  animals  to  dwell  upon 
the  earth.  What  knowledge  of  the  several  ele- 
ments, does  this  adaptation  display,  and  what 
admirable  skill  is  shown  in  the  several  con- 
trivances which  fit  the  various  tribes  of  liv- 
ing things  to  their  peculiar  process  and  modes 
of  life  ! 

How  wonderfully  fitted  for  its  purpose,  is  the 
ear !  It  has  within,  a  hollow  space  over 
which  is  a  tight  membrane,  called  the  drum. 
When  the  air  shakes  or  vibrates,  this  membrane 
vibrates  also,  and  communicates  a  sense  of 
sound  to  the  brain.  Its  use  depends  entirely 
on  the  tendency  of  the  air  to  vibration  ;  and  its 
structure  therefore  shows  that  he  who  made 
the  ear,  understood  the  philosophy  of  the  atmos- 
phere perfectly  ;  and  why  should  He  not,  for  it 
is  His  work  ? 

The  organs  of  the  voice  also  show  a  complete 
knowledge  of  the  nature  of  air  ;  for  they  are  so 
contrived  as  to  produce  a  vibration  of  it,  and 
thus  communicate  sounds  to  the  ears  of  others. 
Is  not  this  a  most  surpassingly  ingenious  de- 
vice ?  You  wish  to  communicate  ideas  to 
another  person,  and  God  has  given  you  organs 


88  NATURAL      RELIGION. 

by  which  these  can  be  committed  to  the  air  ; 
or  in  other  words,  your  voice  has  the  power  of 
producing  such  an  infinite  variety  of  vibrations 
of  the  air,  as  that  all  your  ideas  may  be  carried 
to  another  by  means  of  the  air  !  How  wonder- 
ful, how  admirable  is  this  !  what  wisdom,  what 
knowledge,  what  skill  and  power  of  workman- 
ship does  this  display  !  what  adaptation  of  one 
part  of  the  works  of  creation  to  another  ;  and 
what  consistency  of  plan,  what  unity  of  purpose, 
are  here  unfolded  ! 

The  happy  proportioning  of  one  thing  to 
another,  shows  also  the  wisdom  of  the  Creator. 
Man,  for  instance,  is  adapted  to  the  size  and 
strength  of  a  horse.  If  men  were  giants,  they 
could  not  ride  horses.  If  men  were  either  pig- 
mies or  giants,  they  could  not  milk  cows,  mow 
grass,  reap  corn,  train  vines,  or  shear  sheep, 
with  any  thing  like  the  conveniency  they  do 
now.  If  men  were  pigmies,  they  would  be  lost 
in  the  grass  and  rushes,  and  their  children 
would  be  carried  off  by  birds  of  prey.  Every 
one  can  see,  that  other  things  being  as  they 
are,  man  would  suffer  by  being  either  much 
larger  or  smaller  than  he  is. 

The  wisdom  of  God  is  also  displayed  in  the 
correspondence  of  the  power  and  faculties  of 


parley's    farewell.  89 

animals,  with  the  earth  they  live  in.  It  is  a 
part  of  the  plan  of  the  Creator,  that  sleep  shall 
be  necessary  to  most  animals  ;  and,  accord- 
ingly night  is  provided,  in  which  every  thing 
becomes  still  and  quiet,  and  adapted  to  repose. 
And  consider  that  night,  thus  essential  to  ani- 
mals, is  produced  by  the  revolution  of  the  earth, 
and  this  revolution  is  but  an  obedience  to  the 
attraction  which  impels  the  planets  in  their 
courses.  How  remote  then  is  the  cause  of 
night ;  how  vast  are  the  effects  produced  by 
that  cause,  for  all  the  worlds  belonging  to  the 
solar  system,  are  governed  by  it  ;  and  perhaps 
millions  of  other  worlds  are  under  its  influence. 
And  yet  night,  which  thus  has  its  origin  in  the 
very  foundation  of  the  universe,  is  made  for  the 
chicken  upon  its  roost  and  the  child  on  its  pil- 
low. What  a  connection  is  here  shown,  be- 
tween the  humblest  animals  and  the  very  stars 
of  the  sky  !  How  wonderful  is  the  adaptation 
of  the  different  parts  of  God's  works  to  one  an- 
other !  How  clear  is  the  evidence  of  one  all- 
designing  Mind,  one  all-working  hand  in  the 
universe  ! 


90  NATURAL   RELIGION. 

Chapter  XXIII. 

The  wisdom  and  power  of  God  proved  from  the  instinct  of  animals. 

We  see  a  young  quail  or  partridge,  in  a  few 
hours  after  it  is  hatched,  run  about  and  pick 
seeds  and  eat  them.  It  distinguishes,  as  well 
as  an  old  bird,  between  what  is  suitable  food, 
and  what  is  not.  Before  it  is  two  days  old,  it 
will  immediately  hide  itself  in  the  leaves  and 
bushes  if  a  hawk  is  seen,  or  if  danger  of  any 
kind  approaches. 

A  young  duck  that  has  been  hatched  by  a 
hen,  and  that  for  the  first  time  sees  the  water, 
immediately  runs  to  it,  and,  launches  himself 
upon  it  without  fear,  and  with  a  perfect  know- 
ledge of  the  art  of  swimming,  glides  over  its  sur- 
face. In  these  cases,  as  well  as  many  others, 
it  is  obvious  that  these  creatures  have  some- 
thing prior  to  experience  and  independent  of 
instruction,  and  that  this  guides  them  into  these 
habits  which,  by  their  formation  they  are  fitted 
to  followT.  The  young  duck  can  have  had  no 
lesson  from  the  hen,  teaching  it  to  seek  the 
water  and  to  ride  upon  its  bosom,  nor  can  it 
have  had  any  experience  to  show  it  that  it  is 


Pauley's  farewell.  91 

fitted  for  such  an  exercise.  Yet  it  goes  to  the 
brook  as  soon  as  it  sees  it,  and  as  soon  as  it 
is  on  the  wave  it  pushes  itself  forward  with 
its  paddling  feet  !  Now  this  property  of  the 
duck,  and  which  we  see  is  independent  of  teach- 
ing and  experience,  is  called  instinct.  It  seems 
to  pervade  all  animated  nature,  and  is  the  great 
principle  by  which  animals  are  guided  in  pro- 
pagating their  several  species,  and  in  obtaining 
the  means  of  subsistence.  It  is  a  curious  sub- 
ject of  inquiry,  and  I  shall  collect  several  in- 
stances, in  different  animals,  to  illustrate  it. 

The  means  resorted  to  by  insects  and  birds 
to  secure  the  hatching  of  their  eggs,  display 
wonderful  powers  of  instinct.  The  gad-fly 
lays  an  egg,  which  first  hatches  a  worm,  and 
this  afterwards  becomes  the  fly.  But  the  eggs 
are  to  be  hatched  and  nourished  in  the  intes- 
tines of  a  horse  :  how  then  are  they  to  be  laid  ? 
Flying  round  the  animal,  the  female  fly  cu- 
riously poises  her  body  in  the  air,  while  she  de- 
posites  her  eggs  on  the  hairs  of  his  skin,  and 
when  the  horse  licks  himself,  he  swallows  the 
eggs.  But  the  most  curious  part  of  the  story 
is,  that  these  eggs  are  usually  deposited  on  the 
knees  and  shoulders,  and  parts  of  the  body  that 
the  horse  most  frequently  licks  ! 


92  NATURAL     RELIGION. 

The  eggs  or  spawn  of  the  salmon  and  the 
shad  must  be  deposited  near  the  sources  of  riv- 
ers. These  fishes,  therefore,  leave  the  ocean, 
and  with  incredible  perseverance  proceed  up  the 
streams,  leaping  over  falls  and  shooting  up  the 
cataracts.  Having,  after  proceeding  hundreds 
of  miles,  found  a  proper  place,  they  depo- 
site  their  eggs,  and,  leaving  them  to  the  course 
of  nature,  return  to  their  home  in  the  ocean. 

The  eggs  of  the  violet  crab,  which  lives  in 
the  mountains  of  the  West  Indies,  are  hatched 
in  the  sea.  To  deposite  them  in  their  proper 
place,  the  crab  makes  a  fatiguing  journey  of 
several  months,  deposites  its  eggs  in  the  wave, 
and  then  retracing  its  steps,  goes  back  to  its 
home  in  the  mountains. 

In  all  these  cases,  it  is  plain  that  these  crea- 
tures act  neither  upon  experience  or  instruction. 
The  young,  of  these  several  species,  adopt  the 
means  usually  resorted  to  by  their  kind,  as  rea- 
dily as  others.  Nor  can  they  be  guided  by  love 
for  their  offspring,  for  they  never  see  or  know 
them.  It  is  obvious,  therefore,  that  they  are 
governed  by  that  inward  monitor  which  we  call 
instinct,  and  which  impels  them  to  act  as  they 
do,    without   foreseeing    consequences.      It    is 


Sociable  Weavers,  p.  93. 


parley's    farewell.  93 

equally  clear,  that  birds,  in  constructing  their 
nests,  are  governed  by  the  same  principle.  Ca- 
nary birds  hatched  in  a  cage,  proceed  to  build 
nests  in  the  same  manner  as  the  wild  birds. 
They  set  upon  the  eggs  also  in  the  same  way. 
Having  had  no  experience,  and  no  communica- 
tion with  other  birds  of  their  kind,  they  must  be 
influenced  to  act  only  as  they  do,  by  instinct. 

The  extent  of  this  power  of  instinct  is  re- 
markably displayed  by  birds  in  the  ingenuity 
with  which  many  of  them  build  their  nests. 
The  sociable  weavers  of  Southern  Africa  some- 
times unite  in  hundreds,  and  build  a  vast  cov- 
ering to  a  tree,  like  an  umbrella.  Under  this 
each  bird  builds  his  own  nest ;  and  thus  a 
whole  city  of  weavers  is  united  together  in  one 
common  dwelling,  each  having  his  separate 
room  or  nest. 

In  the  Philippine  isles,  there  is  another  kind 
of  weaver  bird,  w7hose  nest  is  shaped  somewhat 
like  an  inverted  oil  flask,  the  entrance  being 
from  beneath  and  through  the  neck.  This  is 
suspended  from  the  branches  of  a  tree.  There 
is  a  similar  species  in  Africa  that  hangs  its  nest 
with  vast  labor  and  skill  to  the  pendent  branches 
of  the  palm  trees  ;    and  our    own    Baltimore 


94  NATURAL     RELIGION. 

oriole,  or  fiery  hang-bird,  has  a  nest  scarcely 
less  curious,  suspended  to  the  extremities  of 
the  elm,  and  other  large  trees  of  our  country. 
How  often  have  we  seen  them,  amidst  the  rush 
of  the  gale,  swinging  securely  and  in  peace 
in  their  grassy  hammocks  ! 

The  fantail  warbler,  found  in  Spain,  Italy, 
and  other  southern  parts  of  Europe,  is  only 
about  four  inches  in  length,  yet  its  nest  is  a 
master  piece  of  art.  With  great  neatness  a 
number  of  blades  of  grass  are  drawn  together, 
and  sewed  by  a  kind  of  cotton  thread,  manufac- 
tured by  the  bird  itself.  Between  the  stalks  of 
grass,  a  long  barrel-shaped  nest  is  found,  raised 
several  inches  from  the  ground,  and  composed 
of  a  cotton-like  material.  The  whole  contri- 
vance is  very  ingenious,  and  admirably  adapted 
to  concealment  of  the  nest. 

The  reed  wren  is  a  bird  spread  all  over  Eu- 
rope, where  marshes  are  found.  This  too  builds 
its  nest  in  a  most  ingenious  manner,  to  some 
stalk  of  a  reed,  or  tall  blade  of  coarse  sedge. 
It  is  made  of  grasses,  and  curiously  bound  or 
hooped  together  by  the  fibres  of  tough  thread- 
like vegetation. 

The  tailor  bird,  as  his  name  imports,  is  a 


Fantail  Warbler,  p.  94. 


Nest  of  the  Tailor  Bird,  p.  95. 


parley's   farewell.  95 

skilful  mechanic.  He  is  found  in  IXindostan 
and  Ceylon,  where  monkies  and  serpents  climb 
the  trees  in  quest  of  food  or  prey.  To  be  secure 
from  them,  the  tailor  bird  suspends  his  nest  on 
the  outward  twigs  of  tall  trees,  where  even  the 
dexterous  climbing  of  its  enemies  does  not  en- 
ble  them  to  go.  The  bird  is  but  three  inches  in 
length,  yet  it  actually  sews  several  leaves  togeth- 
er with  grass  or  hair,  and  makes  a  nest  between 
them.  Sometimes  the  nest  is  composed  of  one 
leaf,  curled  up,  and  the  edges  sewed  together, 
this  being  secured  by  other  leaves,  and  these 
also  united  by  thread-like  grass. 

The  nest  of  the  golden  crested  wren,  an 
European  species,  is  scarcely  less  curious. 
While  the  bird  is  but  three  inches  long,  the 
nest  is  eleven  in  circumference  ;  it  is  also  very 
finely  matted  and  woven  together,  usually  be- 
neath the  extreme  branches  of  a  larch  or  pine. 
The  nest  of  our  own  little  ruby  throated  hum- 
ming bird,  the  fairy  of  the  feathered  tribe,  is 
one  of  the  most  delicate  and  ingenious  species 
of  art  that  can  be  found.  It  consists  of  a  neat 
cup,  lined  with  the  finest  down  of  plants,  and 
coated  with  moss  in  exact  imitation  of  the 
branch  of  the  tree  to  which  it  is  attached.     This 


96  NATURAL   RELIGION. 

last  device  makes  it  appear  like  a  knot  or  ex- 
crescence of  the  tree,  and  is  usually  an  effectual 
guard  against  discovery.  I  have  passed  a  hun- 
dred times  within  a  few  feet  of  a  humming  bird's 
nest,  in  plain  sight,  without  discovering  it. 

Nor  is  this  wonderful  care  and  skill  of  birds 
in  building  their  nests,  the  whole  extent  of  that 
instinct  with  which  they  are  endowed.  Having 
laid  the  eggs,  the  female  begins  to  sit  upon 
them,  sometimes,  for  a  short  space,  giving  place 
to  the  male.  This  severe  restraint  is  submit- 
ted to  for  two  or  three  weeks,  during  which  the 
bird  is  often  wasted  away  to  mere  skin  and 
bone.  What  is  it  that  induces  the  bird  to  do 
this?  She  does  not,  she  cannot  know  that  young 
birds  are  to  come  from  these  eggs,  for  she  will 
set  as  well  upon  pieces  of  chalk,  as  upon  her 
own  eggs.  She  is  guided  in  this  by  no  know- 
ledge of  what  is  to  happen.  She  is  only 
influenced  by  that  monitor  within,  which  has 
made  it  a  part  of  her  nature.  "  For  myself," 
says  Dr.  Paley,  "  I  never  see  a  bird  sitting  to 
hatch  her  eggs,  but  I  see  an  invisible  hand,  de- 
taining the  contented  prisoner  from  her  fields 
and  her  groves,    for  a  purpose,  as    the  event 


Nest  of  the  Golden  Crested  Wren,  p.  96. 


parley's   farewell.  97 

proves,  the  most  worthy  of  the  sacrifice,   the 
most  important,  the  most  beneficial." 


Chapter  XXIV. 

Instinct  continued.     Quadrupeds  :    The  Beavers  :   Ants. 

The  instinct  of  quadrupeds  is  remarkable  in 
many  things.  By  means  of  it,  the  beaver  is 
taught  to  gnaw  down  trees,  taking  care  to  have 
them  fall  into  the  water,  with  which  it  forms 
the  frame  of  a  house,  and  afterwards  covers  it 
over  with  mortar,  using  his  tail  as  a  trowel. 

But  the  lower  tribes  of  animal  existences, 
perhaps  display  the  most  remarkable  powers  of 
instinct.  Among  the  ants  we  shall  find  that  it 
seems  almost  to  rival  human  reason,  in  the  ex- 
tent of  its  operations.  The  habitations  of  our 
common  ants  are  only  little  hills  on  the  outside, 
yet  within  are  numerous  halls,  passages  and 
chambers. 

The  earth  they  use  is  moistened  with  rain  or 
dew,  and  their  mode  of  building  is  to  scrape  a 
little  grain  from  the  ground  with  their  teeth, 
and  then  to  knead  and  mould  it,  patting  it  down 
with  their  feet.  An  ant-hill  contains  some- 
7 


98  NATURAL    RELIGION. 

times  twenty  stories  above  ground,  and  as  ma- 
ny under  ground  ;  each  divided  into  apartments 
of  different  sizes,  with  arched  ceilings,  sup- 
ported by  little  walls  or  pillars.  When  the 
sun  renders  the  upper  part  too  hot,  they  carry 
their  young  to  the  bottom  of  the  ant-hill,  and 
in  rainy  weather,  when  the  ground-floor  is  unfit 
to  live  in,  they  all  remove  to  the  higher  stories. 
One  kind,  called  toood-ants,  cover  their  nests 
with  a  roof  like  thatch  ;  it  is  made  of  stems  of 
withered  grass  and  straws.  In  the  morning 
they  take  down  part  of  this,  so  as  to  make 
openings  to  go  in  and  out  at  ;  and  every  night 
they  shut  and  bar  them  up,  as  we  do  the  doors 
and  windows  of  our  houses.  Some  ants  live  in 
trees,  where  they  form  rooms  and  passages,  by 
gnawing  out  the  wood. 

In  New  South  Wales  there  is  a  species  of 
ants,  whose  habitation  is  within  the  branches 
of  trees  ;  they  work  out  the  pith  even  to  the 
end  of  the  smallest  twig  ;  and  though  nothing 
is  to  be  seen  outside,  yet  within,  the  tree  is 
completely  filled  with  insects  ;  and  if  a  little 
place  is  broken,  swarms  of  ants  rush  out  imme- 
diately. You  may  think  that  it  would  be  very 
amusing  to  see  this,  but  I  can  assure  you,  you 


parley's    farewell.  99 

would  not  wish  to  try  the  experiment  a  second 
time,  for  the  angry  little  creatures  sting  very 
sharply. 

A  kind  of  ants  found  in  South  America,  con- 
struct their  nest  of  green  leaves,  and  place  it  on 
the  trunk  between  the  branches  of  the  tree. 
Some  of  these  nests  are  as  big  as  a  hogshead. 
This  is  their  habitation  during  the  wet  season  ; 
when  it  is  dry,  they  leave  their  nests,  and  swarm 
all  over  the  woods,  and,  on  their  return,  each 
brings  a  piece  of  green  leaf,  so  large  that  the  in- 
sect itself  is  quite  hidden  under  its  burden. 
Yet  they  march  steadily  along,  and  it  is  a  pret- 
ty sight  to  see  so  many  pressing  forward  to- 
gether, the  path  looks  quite  green  with  them. 
In  some  places  these  ants  are  called  parasol- 
ants,  from  their  carrying  these  round,  green 
pieces  of  leaf.  Great  paths,  three  or  four 
inches  broad,  are  made  by  them,  and  they  will 
sometimes  strip  a  whole  tree  of  its  leaves  in  one 
night. 

Ants  of  all  kinds  live  in  families  ;  all  how- 
ever that  are  born  in  a  nest  do  not  remain  in  it. 
Vast  swarms  may  be  seen  in  the  summer,  fur- 
nished with  wings,  and  assembling,  in  order  to 
leave  their  home  for  ever.     They   are   some- 


100  NATURAL   RELIGION. 

times  so  numerous  as  to  look  like  a  dark  cloud 
floating  in  the  air,  and  if  many  did  not  perish, 
they  would  become  very  troublesome  to  us. 
The  greater  part  of  these  flying  ants,  are  either 
eaten  up  by  birds,  or  fall  into  the  water,  and  be- 
come the  prey  of  fishes.  Those  which  escape 
through  all  these  dangers,  build  themselves 
each  a  small  house,  which  is  soon  filled  and 
enlarged  by  their  offspring,  until  in  time  it 
grows  into  a  populous  city.  And  what  do  you 
think  becomes  of  the  wings  with  which  I  told 
you  each  of  these  ants  was  furnished  ?  They 
were  intended  by  Providence  only  to  serve  the 
purpose  we  have  mentioned,  and  as  soon  as 
they  have  carried  her  to  a  convenient  place,  in 
which  to  found  her  colony,  the  ant  pulls  them 
off  herself,  and  thus  is  secured  from  all  temp- 
tation to  wander  from  her  home.  These  ample 
wings  were  her  chief  ornament,  but  they  would 
be  a  hindrance  in  the  great  work  she  has  to  per- 
form, and  they  are  sacrificed  without  a  mo- 
ment's hesitation. 

The  chief  portion  of  the  ants  in  a  nest  are 
workers,  and  they  perform  all  the  labor ;  they 
have  never  any  wings ;  and  like  the  working-bees 
are  never  parents  themselves,  but  serve  as  nurses 


parley's  farewell.  101 

to  the  offspring  of  others.  The  mode  of  bring- 
ing up  the  young  ants,  renders  their  task  still 
more  fatiguing  than  that  of  the  bees  and  wasps. 
As  soon  as  the  sun's  first  rays  begin  to  shine 
upon  the  nest,  the  ants  that  are  at  the  top  go 
down,  in  great  haste,  to  wake  their  compan- 
ions ;  and  all  the  young  brood  are  then  carried 
and  laid  in  the  sun,  for  a  quarter  of  an  hour. 
After  this,  they  require  to  be  placed  in  other 
apartments,  where  they  may  be  warm  without 
being  scorched  ;  and  every  evening,  an  hour 
before  sunset,  they  must  all  be  carried  down 
into  the  lower  cells,  to  be  safe  from  the  cold. 
There  are  seven  or  eight  thousand  of  these 
young  grubs,  in  a  large  nest,  so  you  may  im- 
agine that  it  requires  much  diligence  to  do  this, 
besides  licking  them  with  their  tongues  as  a  cat 
does  her  kittens,  to  keep  them  clean,  feeding 
them,  collecting  food,  and  repairing  the  nest 
which  is  so  easily  injured. 

There  is  one  most  extraordinary  circumstance 
respecting  some  ants,  which  I  must  now  tell  you. 
You  will  smile  at  the  idea  of  their  having  cows, 
yet  it  is  quite  true  that  they  keep  certain  insects, 
from  which  they  draw  a  sweet  liquid,  in  the 
same  manner  as  we  obtain  milk  from  cows  ; 


102  NATURAL     RELIGION. 

and  they  even  make  a  property  of  them.  If 
any  stranger  ants  attempt  to  climb  the  branch 
of  a  tree,  or  the  stalk  of  a  plant,  where  they 
keep  their  herds,  those  who  consider  them- 
selves the  rightful  owners  drive  them  away, 
and  may  be  seen  running  about  in  a  great 
bustle.  Sometimes  they  build  a  little  wall 
round  the  place  where  these  cattle  are,  and 
so  keep  them  safe  in  a  kind  of  pen.  Some 
kinds,  choosing  to  have  them  still  more  within 
reach,  carry  large  herds  of  these  insect-cows  to 
their  nest,  and  let  them  feed  on  the  grass  and 
stalks  round  which  it  is  built.  They  take  as 
much  care  of  these  creatures'  eggs  as  of  their 
own,  put  them  in  a  place  of  safety  when  the 
nest  is  attacked,  and  carry  them  in  the  same 
manner  into  the  sun  ;  that  by  their  being  hatch- 
ed early,  there  may  be  a  good  supply  of  their 
nourishing  food. 

Ants  are  remarkable  for  courage.  Though 
so  small,  they  never  fear  to  face  any  danger,  but 
immediately  turn  round  and  prepare  to  bite, 
and  to  shoot  their  poison  into  the  wound. 
They  sometimes  fix  themselves  so  obstinately 
to  the  object  of  their  attack,  that  they  will 
sooner  be  torn  limb  from  limb  than  let  go  their 


parley's    farewell.  103 

hold ;  and  man  himself  strikes  no  terror  into 
them. 

These  tiny  nations,  so  well  armed  and  cour- 
ageous, are  not  always  at  peace  with  their 
neighbors.  A  square  foot  of  earth  is  to  them 
a  kingdom  ;  their  droves  of  insect-cattle  are  as 
valuable  to  them  as  our  flocks  and  herds  are  to 
us  ;  and  the  body  of  a  fly  or  a  beetle,  is  a  most 
valuable  possession.  No  wonder  then  if  wars 
and  quarrels  arise.  Myriads  may  sometimes 
be  seen  pouring  forth  from  two  rival  cities,  and 
meeting  halfway  between  their  respective  hab- 
itations, equalling  in  numbers  the  armies  of  two 
mighty  empires.  Though  they  do  not  cover  a 
space  larger  than  two  or  three  square  feet,  yet 
they  present  a  spectacle  exactly  like  that  of  a 
field  of  battle  where  men  are  the  combatants. 
Thousands  are  to  be  seen  struggling  together, 
shooting  poison  at  one  another,  which  fills  the 
air  with  a  strong  odor,  and  is  as  destructive  to 
them  as  gunpowder  is  to  us.  Thousands  of 
the  dead  and  mangled  strew  the  ground,  while 
others  are  led  away  as  prisoners  ;  and  crowds 
are  seen  hastening  to  reinforce  the  contending 
armies. 

How  the  ants  know  those  of  their  own  party, 


104  NATURAL     RELIGION. 

it  is  impossible  to  say,  as  they  are  generally  of 
the  same  kind,  and  appear  to  us  to  be  all  alike 
in  make,  color,  and  scent.  They  are  not  dis- 
tinguished as  human  soldiers  are,  by  different 
colored  uniforms,  yet  it  very  rarely  happens  that 
two  of  one  side  attack  each  other  ;  and  if,  by 
chance,  they  do,  the  mistake  is  presently  found 
out,  and  they  make  friends  directly.  When 
night  comes  on,  each  party  returns  to  its  own 
city,  but  the  next  morning  the  battle  is  resum- 
ed with  fresh  fury,  until  at  length  a  rainy  sea- 
son separates  them,  and  the  quarrel  is  for- 
gotten. 

Ants  not  only  fight  pitched  battles,  as  we 
have  seen  above,  but  they  also  besiege  neigh- 
boring cities,  and  take  them  by  storm.  The 
object  they  have  in  view  is  a  most  extraordina- 
ny  one,  and  could  hardly  have  been  believed, 
if  it  had  not  been  observed,  and  related,  by  so 
many  people.  The  ants  we  are  now  going  to 
speak  of  are  warlike  and  powerful,  but  not  in- 
dustrious like  most  other  kinds.  In  order  that 
they  may  have  slaves  to  do  their  work  for  them, 
they  attack  the  nest  of  a  dark  colored  kind, 
called  negro  ants,  and  carry  off  their  young.  To 
these,  when  they  are  grown  up,  all  the  labor  is 


parley's    farewell.  105 

left ;  they  build  and  repair  the  common  dwelling, 
collect  food,  attend  to  the  young,  and  even  feed 
their  masters,  and  carry  them  about  the  nest. 
Every  year,  the  light  colored  ants  add  to  the 
number  of  their  slaves.  At  the  season  when 
there  is  a  proper  supply  of  workers  in  the  negro 
ant-hills,  they  send  out  spies  into  the  neighbor- 
hood, and  prepare  for  marching.  On  the  return 
of  these  spies  the  signal  is  made,  by  touching- 
one  another  with  their  antennae,  and  they  then 
set  out  to  attack  the  negro  city.  Their  way  of 
marching  is  singular  ;  eight  or  ten  ants  inarch 
first,  and  these  continually  wheel  round  and 
join  the  rest  of  the  army,  while  others  succeed 
to  their  station. 

As  soon  as  the  guards  of  the  city  perceive 
the  enemy  coming,  they  dart  upon  them  with 
the  utmost  fury,  and  crowds  pour  forth  to  assist ; 
but  the  besieging  party  rush  on,  and  drive  them 
back,  until  they  retreat  into  the  lowest  story. 
Numbers  enter  with  them  at  the  gates  ;  while 
others  make  a  breach  in  the  walls,  through 
which  the  conquerers  march  in.  Presently 
they  all  come  out,  each  carrying  a  young  ant, 
which  has  been  seized  in  spite  of  its  anxious 
guardians  ;   and   thus  they  return  in  triumph 


106  NATURAL    RELIGION. 

with  their  spoil.  It  is  a  curious  sight  to  behold 
their  slaves  coming  out  of  the  nest  to  meet 
them,  conducting  the  young  prisoners  in,  bring- 
ing food  to  the  warriors,  and  caressing  them, 
as  if  they  rejoiced  at  their  return.  These  on 
their  part,  are  much  attached  to  their  faithful 
servants,  and  when  the  nest  is  attacked  by  other 
ants,  their  first  care  is  to  carry  them  into  a  place 
of  safety.  Having  been  taken  when  they  were 
quite  young,  they  do  not  feel  the  change,  and 
are  quite  as  happy  as  they  would  have  been 
among  their  own  nation,  where  they  would 
have  had  the  same  tasks  to  perform. 

In  Africa  and  the  Indies  there  is  a  species  of 
ants  called  the  White  Ants  or  Termites. 
These  insects  are  a  quarter  of  an  inch  high,  and 
devour  every  thing  they  can  get  at ;  but  wood 
is  their  favorite  food.  They  will  sometimes 
destroy  all  the  wood  work  in  a  room  in  one 
night.  Their  habitations  are  very  wonderful, 
being  sometimes  twenty  feet  high,  made  of  clay, 
and  resembling  sugar  loaves.  They  are  so  hard, 
that  you  may  walk  upon  them  without  any  dan- 
ger of  breaking  them. 


parley's    farewell.  107 

Chapter  XXV. 

Instinct — Continued.     The  Honey-Bee. 

Of  all  insects  the  honey-bee  is,  on  many 
accounts,  the  most  interesting.  It  has  been  an 
object  of  careful  observation,  and  therefore  its 
history  and  habits  are  all  ascertained.  I  shall 
give  you  a  full  account  of  it,  as  it  seems  to  me 
to  display  the  extent  of  instinct  in  the  most  re- 
markable manner. 

The  honey-bees  of  a  hive  are  divided,  as  you 
know,  into  the  queen-bee,  the  drones,  and  the 
workers.  You  have  doubtless  not  only  tasted 
honey,  but  seen  the  comb.  Do  you  not  think 
it  very  wonderful,  that  small  insects  should  be 
able  to  make  wax  and  honey,  neither  of  which 
men  have  the  power  of  making  ?  How  much 
labor  too  must  it  cost  to  build  and  fill  the  nu- 
merous cells  !  Let  us  follow  a  colony  of  bees 
through  the  various  tasks  they  have  to  perform, 
and  we  shall  see  with  what  surprising  instincts 
they  are  endowed. 

Many  countries  abound  with  ivild  bees,  and 
these  form  their  own  nests  ;  but  I  suppose  you 
have  only  seen  them  under  artificial  coverings, 


108  NATURAL   RELIGION. 

called  hives,  and  which  are  made  of  wood  or 
straw.  These  hives  have  a  little  opening  on 
one  side,  for  the  bees  to  go  in  and  out  at ;  they 
generally  stand  upon  a  wooden  bench,  and  in 
cold  weather  are  placed  under  some  sort  of 
shed. 

A  swarm  of  bees  on  entering  a  new  hive,  im- 
mediately want  cells,  or  little  chambers,  in 
which  to  store  up  their  honey,  and  bring  up  the 
young.  These  cells  cannot  be  made  without 
wax ;  the  first  business  therefore  is  to  obtain  that 
substance.  You  probably  suppose  that  the 
bees  collect  it  from  flowers,  and  that  they  will 
go  out  and  fetch  home  a  store.  But  no,  they 
seem  to  be  quite  idle,  and  hang  in  long  rows, 
like  garlands,  or  strings  of  beads  ;  one  at  each 
end  taking  hold  of  the  roof,  the  rest  clinging  to 
each  other's  legs,  and  so  they  remain  for  four 
and  twenty  hours  without  moving. 

This  does  not  proceed  from  laziness  however, 
nor  are  they  waiting  to  think  what  must  be 
done  ;  you  will  never  guess  why  they  hang  thus ; 
so  I  must  tell  you.  Wax,  instead  of  being 
found  in  flowers,  as  some  people  imagine,  is 
formed  in  thin  cakes,  under  the  scales  which 
case  the  bee's  body.     It  appears  that  it  is  best 


parley's    farewell.  109 

made  while  they  are  quite  quiet  ;  and  this  is 
their  way  of  taking  rest.  While  they  are  clus- 
tering, the  wax  is  forming,  and  when  they  have 
hung  a  number  of  hours  it  may  be  seen  under 
their  scales,  which  then  appear  edged  with 
white. 

And  now,  at  last,  a  bee  comes  out  from  the 
crowd,  clears  about  an  inch,  by  driving  away 
the  others  with  his  head,  and  settling  in  the 
middle  of  this  space,  begins  to  lay  the  founda- 
tion of  a  comb,  which  is  a  flat  piece  of  wax 
composed  of  a  great  number  of  cells.  These 
cells  are  joined  to  each  other's  sides,  and  placed 
in  a  double  row,  end  to  end,  so  that  each  side 
of  the  comb  is  full  of  holes,  fit  for  containing 
eggs  or  honey.  The  bee  we  have  just  men- 
tioned pulls  out  the  little  cakes  one  by  one  from 
its  wax-pockets,  holds  them  in  a  pair  of  pincers, 
with  which  its  legs  are  furnished,  and  works 
them  about  with  its  tongue,  which  is  as  useful 
as  a  trowel.  When  these  are  fixed  to  the  roof 
of  the  hive,  it  disappears  among  its  compan- 
ions. 

Other  bees  follow  this  example,  adding  their 
little  store  of  wax,  until  a  lump  is  formed  large 
enough  to   work   upon.     The   cells   are   then 


110  NATURAL      RELIGION. 

shaped  by  another  set  of  laborers  ;  and  a  third 
party  finish  and  polish  the  work,  by  drawing 
their  mouths,  their  feet,  and  their  whole  bodies 
over  it  again  and  again,  until  it  is  quite  smooth. 
Some  in  the  mean  time  collect  food,  and  bring 
it  to  those  which  are  working  at  the  .cells,  that 
they  may  not  be  hindered.  When  a  laborer 
is  hungry,  he  bends  down  his  trunk  before  the 
bee  which  is  to  feed  him  ;  this  trunk  is  a  mov- 
able mouth,  like  what  you  must  often  have  seen 
in  the  fly  ;  a  few  small  particles  of  honey  are 
poured  into  it,  by  his  companion,  and  he  then 
goes  on  with  his  work.  Though  there  are 
many  thousand  laborers  in  a  hive,  they  do  not 
begin  in  several  places  at  once,  but  wait  until 
a  single  bee  has  laid  the  foundation,  as  I  have 
just  described  to  you.  Each  bee  has  only  a 
certain  quantity  of  wax,  so  they  must  make  it 
go  as  far  as  possible.  If  the  cells  were  made 
round,  a  great  deal  would  be  wasted  in  filling 
up  the  spaces  between  ;  as  you  may  see  your- 
selves, if  you  lay  a  number  of  marbles  together. 
If  they  were  square,  they  would  not  suit  the 
form  of  the  young  bees  which  are  to  be  placed 
in  them.  They  are  therefore  made  with  six 
sides,  so  as  to  join  together  exactly,  and   are 


parley's    farewell.  Ill 

very  convenient,  besides  consuming  the  least 
wax,  and  filling  the  least  space  possible.  Now, 
the  most  learned  men  might  have  spent  years  in 
discovering  this  admirable  plan  ;  but  taught  by 
God  himself,  the  little  insect,  without  study  or 
contrivance,  has  adopted  it  from  the  hour  of  its 
creation ! 

When  some  rows  of  cells  are  finished  in  the 
first  comb,  two  other  foundation  walls  are 
begun,  for  other  combs,  one  on  each  side  of  the 
first,  and  exactly  the  third  of  an  inch  apart 
from  it ;  so  that  a  sort  of  street  is  left  between, 
wide  enough  for  two  bees  to  pass  each  other 
without  difficulty.  Several  more  combs  are 
afterwards  built  beyond  these,  but  all  at  the 
same  distance,  and  all  hanging  from  the  roof. 
As  the  combs  are  placed  in  this  manner,  that 
is  perpendicularly,  or  up  and  down,  the  cells, 
whose  openings  are,  as  we  have  seen,  on  both 
sides  of  the  combs,  must  of  course  lie  along 
instead  of  standing  up.  You  might  imagine, 
therefore,  that  the  honey  would  run  out,  but 
the  bees  seem  to  find  no  inconvenience  in  this 
arrangement,  and  when  the  cells  are  quite  full, 
they  are  sealed  up  with  a  little  lid  of  wax.  In 
order  to  make  their  work  still  firmer,  the  bees 


112  NATURAL    RELIGION. 

collect  a  sort  of  resin  or  gum,  from  the  buds  of 
trees,  and  with  this  they  stop  up  all  cracks,  as 
it  keeps  out  the  weather  better  than  wax. 

I  must  here  mention  the  way  in  which  the 
bee  carries  what  it  wishes  to  bring  to  the  hive. 
You  will  be  ready  to  smile  if  I  say  that  it  takes 
little  baskets  out,  in  which  to  fetch  home  its 
stores  ;  yet  something  very  like  this  is  really 
the  case.  You  must  have  seen  its  legs  laden 
with  heaps  of  a  yellow  substance,  gathered 
from  the  flowers  ;  but  how  do  you  think  this 
dust  is  kept  from  falling  off,  as  the  little  busy 
creature  flies  about  ?  Providence,  in  forming 
the  bee,  has  supplied  it  with  the  most  conven- 
ient means  of  carrying  the  fruits  of  its  industry. 
There  is  a  hollow,  like  a  basket,  in  each  of  its 
hind  legs,  and  in  these  it  places  what  it  collects. 
The  foremost  feet  serve  for  hands  to  fill  them 
with,  and  there  is  a  fringe  of  long  hairs,  all 
round  the  edge  of  the  baskets,  to  prevent  any- 
thing from  falling  out,  even  when  heaped  up 
quite  high  ! 

As  to  honey,  this  is  made  of  a  sweet  juice 
which  is  sucked  by  the  bees  out  of  flowers,  and 
swallowed,  and  in  their  honey-bag  it  is  formed 
into  the  sweet  substance,  which  we  call  by  that 


parley's  farewell.  113 

name.  When  a  bee  has  filled  its  bag  with 
honey,  it  rolls  itself  round  and  round  in  a  flower, 
till  the  yellow  dust  sticks  to  the  feathered  hairs 
with  which  it  is  covered.  The  last  joint  but 
one  of  each  leg  is  just  like  a  brush,  and  these 
little  brushes  it  passes  all  over  its  body,  till  the 
dust  is  collected  into  two  heaps,  which  are 
kneaded,  and  pressed  into  the  baskets  already 
mentioned.  When  a  bee  thus  laden  arrives  at 
the  hive,  others  come  and  help  it  off  with  its 
load.  The  honey  is  poured  out  of  its  mouth 
into  the  cells  prepared  to  contain  it,  and  the 
yellow  dust,  or  pollen  as  it  is  called,  is  kneaded 
into  bee-bread.  Each  bee  goes  out  several 
times  in  the  course  of  the  day,  and  a  calcula- 
tion has  been  made,  that  upwards  of  a  pound 
of  this  substance,  is  often  made  by  the  inhabi- 
tants of  one  hive  in  that  time,  and  as  much  as 
an  hundred  pounds  in  the  course  of  the  year. 

When  their  combs  are  finished,  the  bees  do 
not  sit  down  in  idleness.  Though  they  are  so 
many  in  number,  each  finds  enough  to  do.  You 
have  seen  how  much  labor  they  have  in  collect- 
ing honey  and  bee-bread  ;  the  queen  is  also  to 
be  waited  upon  ;  the  young  are  to  be  nursed  ; 
the  hive  is  to  be  cleared  out  ;  watch  is  to  be 
8 


114  NATURAL   RELIGION. 

kept  continually  at  the  door,  lest  any  enemy 
should  get  in  ;  and  new  apartments  are  to  be 
added  as  the  family  increases  ;  so  that  you  see 
the  expression,  "as  busy  as  a  bee,5,  is  not  with- 
out a  meaning.  Besides  all  this,  they  have  to 
keep  the  hive  cool,  by  continual  fanning.  I  am 
not  going  to  tell  you  that  they  have  fans, 
exactly  like  those  with  which  ladies  cool  them- 
selves ;  but  their  wings  are  made  use  of  just  in 
the  same  manner.  The  bees  who  undertake 
the  office  of  fanners,  are  placed  in  rows  as  sol- 
diers are  ;  they  then  join  their  wings  to  those 
of  their  neighbors,  by  some  little  hooks  which 
grow  at  their  edges,  and  flapping  them  up  and 
down,  make  a  great  deal  of  wind.  There  are 
seldom  more  than  twenty  fanners  at  work  at 
once,  and  as  the  same  bees  would  be  tired  with 
always  performing  this  fatiguing  office,  they 
take  it  by  turns,  and  relieve  one  another. 

I  spoke  just  now  of  nursing  the  young  ;  this 
is  a  very  laborious  part  of  their  employment. 
The  queen  begins  to  lay  eggs  as  soon  as  the 
cells  are  ready,  an  egg  in  each  cell ;  and  before 
any  honey  is  collected,  the  careful  bees  lay  in 
a  store  of  bee-bread,  with  which  to  feed  the 
young  ones.     In  a  day  or  two,  a  little  worm  is 


parley's   farewell.  115 

hatched  from  each  egg,  looking  like  a  maggot 
rolled  up  in  the  form  of  a  ring.  The  bees  are 
very  attentive  to  these  poor  little  helpless  things, 
and  run  about  from  one  to  another,  thrusting 
their  heads  into  the  cells,  to  see  whether  any- 
thing is  wanted,  and  feeding  them  with  bee- 
bread  softened  down  into  a  kind  of  white  jelly. 
After  about  ten  days  the  worm  is  full  grown, 
and  its  kind  nurses,  knowing  that  it  will  require 
no  more  food,  close  up  its  cell  with  a  waxen 
door ;  it  then  begins  to  spin  like  a  caterpillar 
a  soft  web,  and  is  changed  into  a  chrysalis. 

Perhaps  you  do  not  know  what  this  hard  name 
means  ;  but  surely  you  must  sometimes  have 
seen  an  insect  lying  enclosed  in  a  hard  case  like 
a  coffin,  quite  stiff,  and  unable  to  move  ;  it  is 
during  this  state  that  it  is  called  a  chrysalis. 
Well,  after  a  deep  sleep  of  about  ten  days,  the 
little  creature  breaks  open  its  prison,  and 
comes  forth  a  perfect  bee.  The  silken  lining 
is  left  in  the  cell,  and  serves  to  make  it  stronger. 
No  sooner  is  one  young  bee  out  of  this  cradle, 
than  another  egg  is  laid  in  it,  so  that  there  are 
always  a  number  to  be  nursed.  But  the  patient 
bees  are  never  tired,  and  as  soon  as  they  can 
fly,  the  young  ones  take  their  share  of  labor, 
and  do  not  waste  their  time  in  idleness. 


116  NATURAL   RELIGION. 

The  queen-bee  has  already  been  mentioned. 
She  is  so  called  because  she  governs  the  hive ; 
she  is  also  the  mother  of  all  the  young  that  are 
born  in  it.  Her  subjects  are  much  attached  to 
her,  and  treat  her  with  the  greatest  attention. 

The  conduct  of  bees  when  a  queen  is  lost, 
shows  that  they  have  means  of  making  one 
another  understand.  Those  which  first  find  out 
what  has  happened,  run  about  the  hive  in  a  fu- 
rious manner,  touching  every  companion  they 
meet  with  their  little  horns  or  feelers,  which 
are  called  antennce.  These  in  their  turn  run 
about  in  the  same  manner,  and  inform  others  of 
the  sad  event  until  the  whole  hive  is  in  confu- 
sion. This  agitation  lasts  four  or  five  hours, 
after  which  the  bees  begin  to  take  measures  for 
repairing  their  loss.  Nothing  can  be  more  ex- 
traordinary than  the  way  in  which  they  pro- 
ceed. They  build  several  royal  cells,  which 
are  much  larger  than  the  common  ones,  and  of 
a  different  form.  Having  removed  one  of  the 
worker-worms  into  each  of  these,  they  feed  it 
with  a  particular  kind  of  food,  and  in  a  few 
days  it  grows  larger,  and  at  length  comes  out 
a  queen. 

If  bees  lose  their  sovereign,  and  have  no  cells 


parley's  farewell.  117 

with  young  in  them  to  supply  her  place,  they 
leave  off  working,  and  die  in  a  few  days.  But 
if  in  the  midst  of  their  agitation,  their  lost  queen 
should  be  restored,  they  are  quiet  immediately, 
for  they  instantly  remember  and  distinguish  her 
from  all  others.  If  a  new  queen  were  to  be 
placed  in  the  hive  too  soon  after  the  loss  of  the 
other,  no  attention  would  be  paid  her,  and  she 
would  be  starved  to  death  or  smothered  in  the 
crowd.  But  when  four-and-twenty  hours  have 
passed,  and  the  first  grief  is  over,  a  stranger- 
queen  is  well  received,  and  reigns  immediately. 
The  bees  crowd  about  her,  touch  her  by  turns 
with  their  antennae,  for  so,  as  I  have  before 
said,  their  little  horns  are  called,  give  her 
honey,  range  themselves  round  her  in  a  circle, 
and  follow  her  as  a  guard  when  she  moves. 

The  way  in  which  they  behave,  if  another 
queen  comes  into  the  hive,  while  their  own  is  in 
it,  deserves  to  be  mentioned.  The  entrance 
being  guarded  night  and  day  by  sentinels,  noth- 
ing can  go  in  or  out  unperceived.  The  moment 
a  stranger-queen  is  seen  to  enter,  she  is  sur- 
rounded by  a  circle  of  bees,  so  that  she  cannot 
move  ;  and  another  set  of  workers  flock  around 
the  original  queen  in  the  same  manner.     This 


118  NATURAL     RELIGION. 

is  done  to  oblige  them  to  fight.  If  they  try  to 
get  away  they  are  stopped,  but  if  either  shows 
the  least  inclination  to  move  towards  the  other, 
the  workers  make  way  ;  a  desperate  battle 
ensues  between  them,  and  one  is  stung  to  death. 

The  offspring  of  one  queen  alone,  is  too  nu- 
merous for  a  hive  to  hold.  She  will  sometimes 
lay,  in  one  season,  sixty  or  seventy  thousand 
eggs,  so  you  may  easily  suppose,  that  it  would 
never  do  to  have  more  queens  than  one.  Yet 
as  no  swarms  would  leave  their  home  to  seek 
another,  without  a  sovereign  to  lead  them,  some 
of  the  eggs  laid  every  year,  turn  to  young 
queens,  the  rest  producing  drones  and  workers. 
There  are  some  drones  in  every  hive ;  they  are 
rather  larger  than  the  working  bees,  and  do 
not  collect  honey  or  help  to  build  the  cells,  but 
are  turned  out  of  the  hive  before  winter,  that 
they  may  not  eat  what  the  industrious  have 
collected.  Idle  people  are  often  compared  to 
drones. 

It  is  the  nature  of  queen-bees  to  be  very 
jealous  of  one  another,  and  this  is  an  instinct 
given  them,  to  prevent  more  than  one  remain- 
ing in  the  hive.  When  the  young  queens  are 
ready  to  leave  their  cradles,  and  to  become 


parley's  farewell.  119 

perfect  insects,  their  mother  grows  furious, 
tears  open  the  cells,  and  stings  them  to  death, 
before  they  are  capable  of  self-defence.  The 
guards,  which  are  always  placed  about  them, 
make  way,  and  allow  her  to  do  what  she 
pleases.  But  as  the  royal  cells  are  much  thicker 
than  those  of  common  bees,  she  is  tired  after 
opening  one  or  two,  and  gnaws  in  vain  at  a 
third.  Still  agitated  at  the  sight,  she  runs 
about  the  hive  in  a  fury.  By  little  blows  with 
her  antenna?,  she  communicates  the  same  feel- 
ing to  the  workers,  and  they  run  about  in  all 
directions,  until  they  are  so  heated  by  their 
violent  exercise,  and  make  the  air  of  the  hive 
so  hot  that  they  can  stay  in  it  no  longer.  A 
great  number  then  rush  out  in  a  swarm  with 
their  old  queen,  to  seek  another  home  ! 

After  she  is  gone,  the  bees  watch  the  royal 
cells,  and  as  soon  as  a  young  queen  comes 
forth  she  begins  to  attack  the  others,  which  are 
not  yet  full  grown.  But  the  guards  do  not  al- 
low her  to  kill  any  of  them,  as  her  mother  did. 
When  she  is  resisted  she  stands  upright,  and 
utters  a  shrill,  piercing  cry.  On  hearing  this 
the  bees  hang  down  their  heads,  and  seem  quite 
stupified ;   but  as  soon  as  she  begins  again  to 


120  NATURAL   RELIGION. 

gnaw  the  wax  she  is  silent,  and  they  recover 
themselves,  and  drive  her  away.  After  run- 
ning in  vain  from  one  to  another,  and  meeting 
with  the  same  treatment,  she  rages  about  the 
hive,  until  with  a  number  of  workers  she  quits 
it,  as  the  former  queen  did.  The  same  thing 
happens,  again  and  again,  with  other  young 
queens  as  they  come  forth,  until  several  swarms 
have  issued  from  the  hive. 

The  bees  on  all  other  occasions  are  most  re- 
spectful to  their  monarch,  but  they  know  that 
several  leaders  are  necessary,  and  that  too 
many  must  not  be  destroyed.  When  only  one 
queen  is  wanted,  they  encourage  them  to  fight, 
as  we  have  already  seen  ;  but  it  sometimes  hap- 
pens in  the  swarming  season,  that  three  or  four 
are  ready  to  leave  their  cells  at  the  same  time, 
before  the  birth  of  a  sufficient  number  of  work- 
ers. In  this  case  the  bees  keep  them  prisoners 
for  some  days,  and  shut  up  the  cells  with  wax, 
as  fast  as  the  young  queens  try  to  bite  their 
way  out.  When  they  call  for  food,  and  thrust 
their  trunk  through  a  hole,  made  just  large 
enough  for  the  purpose,  a  nurse-bee,  standing 
by,  immediately  gives  them  some  honey.  When 
fresh  swarms  are  ready  to  go  with  them,  they 


parley's   farewell.  121 

are  let  out,  and  thus  new  colonies  are  formed, 
and  we  are  supplied  with  plenty  of  these  use- 
ful little  creatures. 


Chapter   XXVI. 

Instinct  continued.     The  Spider.     Conclusion  of  this  topic. 

The  spider  has  not  a  very  pleasant  charac- 
ter, but  his  ways  are  too  curious,  and  his 
instincts  too  wonderful,  to  be  passed  by. 

Though  formed  for  purposes  of  destruction, 
the  spider's  web  is  more  delicate  and  beautiful 
than  the  work  of  any  other  insect.  No  one, 
who  has  ever  been  out  on  a  bright  summer 
morning,  can  have  failed  to  admire  the  fine 
lace- work  of  silvery  threads  which  adorns  every 
bush,  and  almost  every  blade  of  grass.  How 
beautifully  do  the  long  rows  of  dew-drops, 
which  hang  on  these  webs,  tremble  with  every 
breeze,  and  sparkle  in  the  beams  of  the  newly 
risen  sun  !  It  is  no  wonder  that  the  victims 
for  whom  the  snares  are  spread,  fly  into  them  so 
readily,  and  fear  no  danger.  Were  they  to 
see   their   terrible    enemy  herself,  they  would 


122  NATURAL  RELIGION. 

avoid  her,  but  she  is  very  cunning,  and  gene- 
rally keeps  out  of  sight. 

There  are  many  kinds  of  spiders,  of  very  dif- 
ferent sizes  ;  some  are  at  least  two  inches  long, 
and  able  to  devour  little  birds ;  but  all  are  much 
smaller  in  this  country.  They  are  generally  of 
a  dirty  brown  color,  though  some  field-spiders 
are  prettily  marked  with  green,  and  black  and 
white  stripes.  This  insect  has  eight  eyes, 
which  it  cannot  shut  or  move,  but  as  some  are 
placed  in  front  of  the  head,  some  at  the  back, 
and  some  on  the  sides,  it  can  see  every  thing 
that  passes  around.  Its  head  is  armed  with 
two  stings,  which  have  rough  edges  like  saws, 
and  end  in  a  nail,  like  the  claw  of  a  cat. 
When  not  wanted  for  use,  this  nail  is  bent  down 
like  a  knife  upon  its  handle,  and  near  the  point 
is  a  small  opening,  through  which  a  liquid  poi- 
son is  forced  out.  With  these  fearful  weapons 
the  spider  soon  destroys  any  creature  it  can 
seize,  and  wo  to  the  unlucky  animal  that  falls 
into  its  power  !  Each  of  its  eight  legs  is  fur- 
nished with  three  movable  claws ;  one  is  small, 
like  the  spur  of  a  bird,  and  placed  on  the  side  ; 
the  two  others  are  longer,  and  with  these  it  can 
fix  itself  wherever  it  pleases,  and  move  in  every 


parley's  farewell.  123 

direction.  Besides  these  eight  legs,  the  spider 
has  two  other  limbs,  in  the  fore  part  of  its  body, 
which  may  be  called  arms,  as  they  are  only 
used  for  turning  and  holding  its  prey.  You 
would  scarcely  imagine  that  such  a  dreadful 
creature  should  require  nets  to  catch  the  insects 
upon  which  it  feeds  ;  but  if  you  remember  that 
they  have  wings,  and  it  has  none,  you  will  see 
that  it  could  not  easily  overtake  them,  and  that 
these  snares  are  very  useful  to  entrap  them  as 
they  fly. 

For  the  purpose  of  forming  its  web,  the  spi- 
der has  a  most  curious  spinning-machine,  much 
less  simple  than  that  of  the  caterpillar.  It 
consists  of  four  little  knobs,  which  we  will  call 
spinners,  enclosed  by  a  ring,  and  pierced  with 
a  multitude  of  holes,  so  numerous,  and  so  ex- 
tremely fine,  that  there  are  above  a  thousand  in 
each  of  these  four  divisions,  a  space  itself  not 
bigger  than  the  point  of  a  pin.  From  every 
one  of  the  holes  a  thread  proceeds,  so  that  the 
very  finest  part  of  a  web,  which  we  can  scarcely 
see,  is  not  a  single  line,  but  a  cord,  composed 
of  at  least  four  thousand  strands,  as  a  rope- 
maker  would  call  them.  If  you  examine 
closely,  you  may  see,  with  your  own  eyes,  that 


124}  NATURAL    RELIGION. 

these  threads  are  not  single,  but  the  number  of 
their  parts  cannot  be  counted  without  the  assis- 
tance of  a  microscope. 

How  far  are  all  the  contrivances  of  human 
skill  excelled  by  the  machine  with  which  this 
little  insect  is  provided,  for  weaving  its  delicate 
web  !  Were  there  no  other  proof  that  the 
world,  with  every  thing  in  it,  was  formed  by 
an  Almighty  Being,  this  alone  should  be  suffi- 
cient to  convince  us.  When  you  find  all  this 
curious  machinery  contained  in  a  space  so 
small,  that  your  senses  can  scarcely  perceive 
its  various  parts  ;  when  your  imagination  can- 
not even  form  an  idea  of  their  extreme  fineness  ; 
does  not  this  make  you  feel  as  David  did,  when 
he  had  been  meditating  upon  the  works  of  cre- 
ation, and  exclaimed,  "  Lord,  what  is  man  that 
thou  art  mindful  of  him,  or  the  son  of  man  that 
thou  visitest  him  ?  " 

You  perhaps  wonder  why  such  curious  con- 
trivance is  bestowed  on  these  threads,  instead 
of  their  being  quite  simple.  The  great  Maker 
of  all  things  does  nothing  in  vain,  and  always 
makes  use  of  the  means  best  suited  to  the  pur- 
pose. Their  being  so  many  times  double,  adds 
much  to  their  strength,  for  it  is  well  known  in 


parley's  farewell.  125 

manufactures,  particularly  in  rope-spinning, 
that  cords  formed  of  many  smaller  ones  are 
much  stronger  than  those  which  are  spun  at 
once. 

You  must  have  observed  that  there  is  a  great 
variety  in  the  appearance  of  spiders'  webs. 
Those  which  are  generally  found  in  houses, 
look  only  like  a  piece  of  gauze  or  thin  muslin. 
Some  have  the  addition  of  a  number  of  single 
threads,  fastened  to  their  edge,  joining  and 
crossing  each  other  in  every  direction,  and  car- 
ried up  often  to  the  height  of  several  feet. 
These  lines  are  very  much  like  the  tackling  of 
a  ship,  and  insects  can  scarcely  avoid  flying 
across  thein.  Striking  against  these  ropes  they 
become  entangled,  and  in  struggling  to  get 
free  generally  fall  into  the  net  spread  under- 
neath to  receive  them.  That  she  may  keep 
quite  out  of  sight,  and  not  frighten  away  her 
victims,  the  spider  often  adds  a  little  silken 
apartment,  below  the  web,  and  in  order  to  know 
when  anything  is  caught,  she  spins  several 
threads  from  the  edge  of  the  net  to  that  of  her 
hole  ;  these,  by  moving,  give  notice  of  what 
has    happened,    and    serve  as   a   bridge   upon 


126  NATURAL     RELIGION. 

which  she  may  run  in  a  moment  to  secure  her 
prey. 

But  the  most  beautiful  webs,  by  far,  are  those 
so  often  found  on  shrubs  and  hedges,  formed 
with  regular  rays  like  the  spokes  of  a  wheel, 
and  with  a  number  of  circles  one  within  another. 
The  spiders  which  form  them  are  called  geomet- 
rical spiders.  It  is  most  interesting  to  watch 
the  weaving  of  one  of  them,  and  you  may  have 
opportunities  of  seeing  it  for  yourselves,  if  you 
choose. 

When  a  spider  has  completed  her  snares,  she 
hides  herself,  as  you  have  already  heard,  and 
the  moment  an  unfortunate  fly,  or  other  insect, 
touches  the  net,  feeling  the  lines  move,  she 
rushes  out  and  seizes  it  with  her  fangs.  If  it 
be  small,  she  carries  it  off  at  once  to  her  hid- 
ing-place, which  serves  also  for  a  slaughter- 
house, and  having  sucked  out  the  juices,  throws 
away  the  carcass.  Sometimes  a  wasp  or  large 
bee  is  caught,  which  is  so  strong  that  the  spi- 
der knows  it  is  more  than  a  match  for  her  ;  in 
this  case,  she  often  assists  its  escape,  by  break- 
ing the  part  of  the  net  to  which  it  hangs,  glad 
to  get  rid  of  so  dangerous  a  guest,  even  at  this 
price.     In  general,  however,  she  wraps  the  lar- 


parley's   farewell.  127 

ger  insects  round  with  threads,  in  a  most  skil- 
ful manner,  until  their  legs  and  wings  being 
fastened,  they  can  no  longer  struggle,  but  may 
be  carried  off  without  resistance  to  her  den. 

The  bodies  of  spiders  being  hairy,  would 
always  be  covered  with  fragments  of  their  gum- 
my threads,  if  great  care  were  not  taken  to  pre- 
vent it.  They  may  often  be  seen  slowly  comb- 
ing off  the  flue,  and  tossing  it  away,  and  when 
they  let  themselves  down  by  a  line,  they  coil  it 
up  into  a  little  ball,  on  ascending  again,  and 
throw  it  away.  Two  of  the  claws  belonging 
to  spiders  are  toothed  like  a  comb,  and  are 
equally  fitted  for  the  above  purpose,  and  for 
running  along  their  lines.  But  this  formation 
does  not  enable  them  to  walk,  as  flies  do,  upon 
any  upright  polished  substance,  such  as  glass  ; 
they  have  however  the  means  of  constructing  a 
rope-ladder.  This  is  done  by  raising  the  spin- 
ners as  high  as  possible,  and  pressing  them 
against  the  surface.  A  step  is  thus  formed, 
upon  which  the  insect  stands  to  form  a  second, 
in  the  same  manner,  and  so  on,  as  any  one  may 
see  by  putting  a  spider  at  the  bottom  of  a  very 
clean  wine-glass. 

These   insects    can    also  make  bridges,   by 


128  NATURAL    RELIGION. 

which  they  may  cross  brooks  or  ditches,  and 
transport  themselves  from  one  tree  to  another. 
For  this  purpose  they  fix  a  thread  to  the  spot 
where  they  may  be,  and  wait  until  the  other  end 
of  it  is  blown  by  the  wind  to  some  neighboring 
tree,  or  other  object,  and  by  its  natural  gummi- 
ness  has  stuck  to  it.  They  try  whether  it  is 
firmly  fixed  by  pulling  at  it  repeatedly  with 
their  feet,  and  finding  it  so,  trust  themselves  to 
this  slight  bridge,  and  pass  safely  across,  draw- 
ing a  second  line  after  them,  as  a  security,  in 
case  the  first  should  give  way. 

You  will  be  surprised  to  hear  that  some  spi- 
ders are  able  to  float  in  the  air,  in  the  same 
manner  as  you  would  fly  a  kite,  and  sometimes 
to  such  an  astonishing  height,  that  people, 
standing  on  the  top  of  a  very  high  church  stee- 
ple, have  seen  these  gossamer  spiders,  as  they 
are  called,  above  them.  Their  way  of  flying- 
is  this  ;  they  climb  to  the  top  of  a  gate,  a  blade 
of  grass,  or  anything  else  which  will  raise  them 
a  little  above  the  ground.  When  their  thread 
is  drawn  out,  by  the  current  of  air,  into  fine 
lines  several  feet  in  length,  they  know  that  it 
will  enable  them  to  float  ;  they  then  quit  their 
hold  of  the  object  on  which  they  stood,  and 
begin  their  journey  aloft. 


parley's  farewell.  129 

Such  are  a  few  of  the  facts  in  the  natural  his- 
tory of  the  spider.  It  would  be  easy  to  extend 
the  instances  in  which  remarkable  powers  of 
instinct  are  displayed  ;  but  this  is  unnecessary 
to  our  present  purpose.  I  have  entered  already 
into  pretty  full  details,  for  I  was  desirous  to 
show  how  abundant  and  how  astonishing  the 
proofs  are,  even  in  the  inferior  works  of  crea- 
tion, that  an  intelligent  Being  and  powerful 
Creator  presides  over  the  universe.  These 
proofs  are  found  everywhere,  on  a  minute  in- 
spection of  the  works  of  nature.  I  know  of 
nothing  which  makes  all  this  more  clear,  than 
to  see  spiders,  bees,  and  ants,  performing  their 
various  tasks,  and  displaying  their  several  kinds 
and  degrees  of  skill.  These  little  creatures, 
which  have  but  two  or  three  senses,  which  have 
no  experience  and  no  instruction,  are  still  quali- 
fied to  execute  works  which  rival,  nay,  in  some 
cases  surpass  the  nicest  productions  of  human 
skill.  And  what  does  all  this  show  1 — the 
boundless  skill  of  their  Creator — of  Him  who 
has  loaned  to  them  for  a  short  time,  and  during 
their  brief  existence,  a  spark  of  that  Intelli- 
gence which  is  infinite! 
9 


130  NATURAL     RELIGION. 

Chapter  XXVII. 

Wisdom  and  power  of  God  proved  by  animal  life,  and  by  the  mind  of  mart. 

Let  us  suppose  that  we  could  account  for  the 
creation  of  the  bodies  of  animals,  and  for  ani- 
mal instincts  ;  who  then  is  the  author  of  animal 
life  ?  The  bodies  of  animals  are  composed  of 
bones  and  muscles  and  flesh,  &c;  these  consist 
only  of  matter,  and  matter  of  itself  cannot  move. 
You  place  any  piece  of  matter  on  the  ground, 
as  a  stone,  a  bone,  or  a  piece  of  flesh,  and  there 
it  will  rest  forever,  unless  something  that  has 
the  power  to  move  it,  comes  to  act  upon  it. 

Yet  an  animal  has  in  his  material  body  a 
power  which  we  call  life,  and  which  can  cause 
the  muscles  to  act,  and  compel  the  body  to 
move.  This  power  is  distinct  from  the  mate- 
rial body,  but  it  causes  the  heart  to  beat,  the 
blood  to  circulate,  the  muscles  to  move,  the 
body  to  act  ;  for  as  soon  as  life  leaves  the 
body,  though  its  material  form  remains  perfect, 
it  ceases  to  move,  and  is  dead.  Now  who  put 
into  the  body  this  life  ?  Who  invented,  who 
constructed  and  adapted  to  the  body,  this  mys- 


parley's  farewell.  131 

terious  power,  that  can  exercise  such  influence 
over  mere  matter  ? 

We  can  only  reply  that  He  whose  works  are 
above  and  beyond  the  wisdom  and  power  of 
man,  is  the  Author  of  life.  It  is  he  alone  who 
has  put  into  the  insect,  the  fish,  the  bird,  the 
quadruped,  and  into  man,  this  principle  or  gift, 
which  makes  a  mere  organized  mass  of  earth 
live,  breathe,  walk,  run,  eat,  drink,  see,  smell, 
taste  and  feel.  Who  but  God  can  make  a 
piece  of  clay  do  all  these  things  ?  Can  we 
account  for  the  existence  of  animated  beings, 
beings  which  live,  move,  and  do  all  the  things 
we  have  mentioned,  but  by  referring  their  exis- 
tence to  God  ?  And  do  we  not  see  that  God, 
in  the  creation  of  such  beings,  has  set  before 
us  a  most  wonderful  display  of  his  wisdom  in 
designing,  and  his  power  in  executing  ? 

Let  us  carry  this  inquiry  one  step  farther. 
Who  made  the  Mind  of  man  1  Here  is  a  power 
still  higher  than  animal  life  ;  a  power  that  can 
reason,  that  can  contrive  and  design  ;  a  power 
that  can  appreciate  truth  ;  that  can  love  and 
hate,  hope  and  fear  ;  and  now  who  made  it  ? 
Man  did  not  and  could  not  make  his  own  body, 
much  less  that  high  gift,  the  mind.     Consider 


132  NATURAL    RELIGION. 

the  power  of  the  mind.  It  has  memory,  which 
retains  the  past ;  it  has  judgment,  which  esti- 
mates the  past  and  present ;  it  puts,  as  it  were, 
a  girdle  around  the  earth  and  measures  its 
mighty  circumference  ;  it  climbs  to  the  skies, 
and  passing  from  star  to  star,  becomes  familiar 
with  the  sublime  architecture  of  the  Almighty. 
The  mind  has  imagination,  which  can  form  the 
loftiest  conceptions  ;  it  has  conscience,  which  is 
a  guide  in  the  pursuit  of  virtue  ;  it  has  taste, 
which  makes  it  feel  the  force  of  beauty  and  sub- 
limity ;  it  has  invention,  which  has  enabled  man 
to  build  cities,  to  construct  steamboats  and  rail- 
roads ;  to  make  ships  that  plough  the  deep  ;  to 
devise  language  and  write  books  ;  to  record  his- 
tory, to  enact  laws,  to  establish  government. 
All  these  are  the  attributes  of  the  human  mind  ; 
and  who  but  a  God  of  infinite  power  and  wis- 
dom could  be  its  author  ? 


Chapter  XXVIII. 

The  wisdom  and  power  of  God  displayed  by  the  sun,  moon,  and  stars. 

We  have  now  examined  the  various  works  of 
creation,  to  be  found  upon  the  surface  of  this 
earth,  and  they  all  testify  to  the  existence  of  a 


parley's  farewell.  133 

God,  of  infinite  skill  and  power.  We  find  in 
plants,  insects,  animals  and  man,  contrivances 
which  show  a  Designing  Mind  and  a  Work- 
ing Hand,  combining  wisdom  and  ability,  infi- 
nitely beyond  those  of  any  earthly  being,  and  we 
are  therefore  compelled  to  refer  their  existence 
to  a  God,  all-wise  and  all-powerful. 

But  even  if  we  could  account  for  the  ingen- 
ious structure  of  plants  and  animals — if  we 
could  show  that  they  made  themselves — still, 
who  furnished  the  materials  ?  Who  made  the 
elements,  earth,  air,  fire,  and  water  ?  If  man 
made  himself,  who  gave  him  the  bone,  the  flesh, 
the  blood,  or  the  substances  out  of  which  to 
shape  them  ?  Who  made  the  earth  on  which 
we  stand,  the  air  we  breathe,  and  the  sun 
whose  light  we  share  ?  We  can  only  answer 
these  questions  by  referring  their  existence  to 
the  creative  power  of  God.  If  you  go  forth 
inquiring  of  the  several  objects  of  Nature  who 
made  ye  ? — each  blade  of  grass,  each  leaf  and 
flower  and  tree,  answers,  "  God!"  the  insect, 
the  reptile,  the  bird,  the  quadruped,  answers, 
God! — man  answers,  God!  instinct  life  and 
mind  answer,  God  !  the  very  elements  answer, 
God  !  the  mute  stone  answers,  God  ! 


134 


NATURAL    RELIGION. 


But  let  us  step  in  imagination  for  one  mo- 
ment beyond  the  surface  of  this  earth,  and  con- 
template the  solar  system.  With  this,  we  are 
but  imperfectly  acquainted,  but  we  know  the 
size  of  the  sun,  and  of  the  several  planets  which 
revolve  around  it.  We  know  their  motions  and 
their  several  velocities.  Let  us  take  a  view 
of  this  wonderful  mechanism. 

There  are  eleven  planets  which  belong  to 
our  solar  system.  The  following  tables  give 
their  several  distances  from  the  sun  ;  their 
diameter  ;  the  periods  in  which  they  make  their 
circuits  around  the  sun  ;  as  well  as  the  diame- 
ter and  diurnal  rotation  of  the  sun  itself. 


Names  of  the  Distance  from  the  sun  in 
Planets.  millions  of  miles. 


Sun 

Mercury 

Venus 

Earth 

Mars 

Vesta 

Juno 

Ceres 

Pallas 

Jupiter 

Saturn 

Uranus 


37,000,000 

68,000,000 

95,000,000 

144,000,000 

225,000,000 

252,000,000 

263,000,000 

265,000,000 

490,000,000 

900,000,000 

1,800,000,000 


Length  of 
years  in  days. 

Diameter  in 
miles. 

88 

225 

365.5 

687 

1,326 

1,593 

1,681 

1,686 

4,333 

10,759 

30,687 

8S3,000 
3,224 
7,687 
7,911 
4,189 

89,170 
79,042 
35,112 

Diurnal  rotation. 

Days. Hours. Minutes. 

25  14  8 

15  —  — 

—  23  21 

—  24  0 

—  24  39 


—  9  56 

—  10  16 
Unknown. 


parley's   farewell.  135 

Thus  it  appears  that  our  Earth  is  seven 
thousand  nine  hundred  and  eleven  miles  in 
diameter,  and  therefore  it  is  about  twenty-four 
thousand  miles  around  it.  What  an  incon- 
ceivable bulk!  And  now  let  us  compare  the 
strength  of  man  with  that  of  God.  A  man  can 
lift  a  stone  half  as  large  as  his  own  body  ;  but 
God  can  lift  this  earth,  with  all  its  stones  and 
rocks  and  mountains  and  rivers  and  seas  and 
continents.  He  can  not  only  lift  it,  but  he  can 
do  more.  This  Earth  turns  round  every  twenty- 
four  hours,  and  as  it  is  twenty-four  thousand 
miles  around  it,  every  tree  and  house  and  man 
and  animal  goes  with  it  at  the  rate  of  one  thou- 
sand miles  an  hour  !  Nay,  more,  this  earth,  with 
all  its  lands  and  waters  and  inhabitants,  goes 
round  the  sun  once  a  year.  Its  distance  from 
the  sun  is  95  millions  of  miles.  The  whole 
distance  it  travels  in  a  year  is  about  570  mill- 
ions of  miles.  This  is  about  one  million  six 
hundred  and  sixteen  thousand  miles  every  day, 
sixty-seven  thousand  two  hundred  miles  every 
hour,  one  thousand  one  hundred  and  twenty 
miles  every  minute,  nineteen  miles  every  time 
your  pulse  beats  ! 

Man  then  can  lift  a  stone  half  as  large  as  his 


138  NATURAL   RELIGION. 

body,  but  Go€l  lifts  a  world  twenty-four  thou- 
sand miles  in  circumference ;  nay,  more,  he 
tosses  it  into  the  air,  and  whirling  it  through 
the  heavens,  it  goes  at  the  rate  of  one  thousand 
one  hundred  and  twenty  miles  a  minute  !  Nor 
does  it  stop  in  its  progress.  Age  after  age  it 
continues,  and  after  centuries  have  passed,  still 
it  pauses  not  in  its  flight  ! 

But  what  will  you  say  when  I  tell  you  that 
the  sun  is  as  large  as  three  hundred  and  thirty- 
seven  thousands  of  our  worlds  ?  that  Jupiter 
is  as  large  as  one  thousand  two  hundred  and 
eighty-one  of  our  worlds  1  that  Mercury  flies 
along  in  its  path  at  the  rate  of  three  hundred 
and  fifteen  miles  in  a  second  ?  and  that  Uranus 
is  seventeen  times  as  large  as  our  world,  one 
billion  eight  hundred  millions  of  miles  from  the 
sun,  and  flies  along  at  the  rate  of  two  hundred 
and  forty  miles  every  minute  ! 

Here  then  is  the  power  of  God  !  A  world, 
with  all  its  mountains  and  oceans  and  kingdoms, 
is  but  a  pebble  in  the  hands  of  the  Almighty. 
Our  solar  system  alone  has  eleven  such  worlds, 
beside  the  numerous  moons  that  revolve  around 
them,  and  beside  the  comets,  those  strange,  mys- 
terious, wandering  worlds,  some  of  whose  tails 


parley's   farewell.  137 

are  twelve  millions  of  miles  in  length,  and 
whose  velocity  outstrips  even  the  speed  of  the 
swiftest  planets. 

But  these  worlds  of  our  system  are  but  eleven 
of  those  thousand  stars  that  glitter  in  the  sky ; 
and  far  beyond  those  we  can  see,  is  an  endless 
path,  familiar  to  the  footsteps  of  God,  glittering 
with  stars  whose  very  light  has  not  yet  travelled 
down  to  man.  And  these,  no  doubt,  are  suns, 
around  which  other  worlds  revolve  ;  and  He 
who  made  the  insect  is  the  Maker  of  them  all ! 


Chapter    XXIX, 


Wisdom  and  power  of  God,  as  seen  by  considering  him  as  the  Creator 
and  Sustainer  of  all  things. 

Yes,  my  young  friends,  He  who  made  this 
little  violet  that  I  hold  in  my  hand,  made  the  sun, 
which  is  three  hundred  and  thirty-seven  thou- 
sand times  larger  than  our  earth.  He  who  made 
the  butterfly  that  is  dancing  in  the  breeze,  made 
that  planet  Mercury,  which  flies  three  hundred 
and  fifteen  miles  every  time  your  heart  beats. 
He  who  made  the  little  sparrow  on  yonder  rose 
bush,  made  that  great  planet  Jupiter,  which  is 


138  NATURAL   RELIGION. 

one  thousand  two  hundred  and  eighty-one  times 
as  large  as  this  earth.  He  who  made  the  squir- 
rel leaping  from  bough  to  bough  on  yonder  tree, 
made  the  comets  which  sweep  through  the 
heavens  with  fiery  trains,  millions  of  miles  in 
length.  He  who  made  man,  built  the  ocean 
and  the  land,  and  strewed  the  vault  of  heaven 
with  stars,  as  the  sea  with  pearls  ! 

And  now  let  us  contemplate  these  things  as 
all  the  work  of  one  Being  ;  and  let  us  consider 
that  they  are  not  only  made  by  Him,  but  that 
every  moment  they  call  upon  him  to  sustain 
them.  Let  us  remember  that  God  has  not  only 
made  plants  and  animals,  but  that  if  not  con- 
tinued, supported  and  carried  forward  by  Him, 
they  would  instantly  perish  ;  let  us  remember 
that  but  for  Him  the  rivers  would  cease  to  flow, 
the  air  would  be  still,  the  planets  would  halt, 
the  stars  would  be  quenched  from  the  sky.  It 
is  God  who  gives  to  all,  life  and  motion.  Let 
him  take  his  power  from  them,  and  the  king- 
doms of  Nature  would  be  shrouded  with  ever- 
lasting forgetfulness. 

God,  then,  is  the  maker  and  sustainer  of  all 
things.  Let  us  consider  him  as  such.  We 
take  the  vegetable  kingdom.     Every  leaf  and 


parley's  farewell.  139 

stem  and  fibre  is  made  by  him  ;  each  blade 
of  grass  is  woven  by  His  fingers.  Day  by  day, 
hour  by  hour,  he  must  be  there  to  attend  to  the 
process  of  their  manufacture.  And  he  must  at 
the  same  moment  attend  to  every  blade  of  grass 
throughout  the  world,  in  the  same  way.  In 
the  same  way,  he  must  shape  every  leaf,  unfold 
every  flower,  and  braid  every  stalk  and  stem. 
Think  of  the  myriads  of  plants  in  a  single  field, 
and  consider  that  God  is  attending  every  mo- 
ment to  every  one  of  them,  and  not  to  them 
only,  but  to  all  others  that  are  in  the  universe! 
To  each  of  these  he  is  every  moment  giving 
heat  and  light  and  moisture,  and  to  each  of  these 
he  is  attending,  more  carefully  than  a  nurse  to 
an  infant. 

Let  us  consider  the  insects.  There  are  forty 
thousand  species  of  these,  and  countless  myri- 
ads of  each  species.  The  air,  the  land,  the 
very  depths  of  the  sea  are  filled  with  them,  and 
the  Creator  must  attend  to  each  one  of  them 
every  moment.  Where  there  is  life  and  motion, 
there  must  He  be,  to  sustain  it.  There  He  must 
be  to  mould  the  eggs,  to  endow  them  with  life, 
to  frame  all  the  nice  mechanism  of  the  young, 
and  to  preserve  that  of  the  old.     And  beside, 


140  NATURAL     RELIGION. 

they  must  all  be  endowed  with  their  several 
instincts.  Every  bee  must  be  taught  the  won- 
derful art  of  making  and  storing  honey  ;  every 
ant  must  be  instructed  in  the  political  economy 
of  the  hill  ;  each  spider  must  be  enabled  to  spin 
his  thread  of  four  thousand  strands. 

The  birds  of  the  air  claim  the  attention  of 
their  Maker.  He  must  construct  every  feather, 
and  mark  it  with  the  hues  of  its  kind  ;  he  must 
preside  over  the  nice  machinery  of  every  wing 
— the  whole  internal  structure  must  be  his. 
Every  egg  must  derive  the  principle  of  vitality 
from  his  touch.  Think  of  the  myriads  of  the 
feathered  tribes,  that  are  scattered  over  the 
earth,  in  vale  and  meadow  and  mountain  and 
marsh,  along  the  pebbly  shore  of  the  deep — upon 
the  lonely  seaward  isles — upon  the  bosom  of 
the  ocean — and  consider  that  every  wing  that 
winnows  the  air,  every  downy  breast  that 
divides  the  wave,  must  call  upon  God  every  mo- 
ment for  support.  Think,  too,  that  each  and  all 
of  them  are  to  be  supplied  by  Him  with  that 
teaching  which  alone  enables  them  to  support 
existence,  or  to  perpetuate  their  several  races  ! 

And  the  myriad  fishes  of  the  sea — these  too 
depend  upon  God.     He  must  measure  and  fit 


parley's  farewell.  141 

the  scales  of  the  perch,  he  must  construct  the 
delicate  bony  frame-work  of  the  fins  and  cover 
them  over  with  their  silky  film.  The  little  min- 
now— nay,  the  minute  eel  of  transparent  water 
— invisible  to  the  naked  eye  and  only  to  be  dis- 
cerned by  a  microscope,  must  receive  from  God 
every  bone  and  muscle  and  nerve.  And  while 
he  attends  to  these,  he  is  called  upon  to  preside 
over  the  whale,  to  measure  out  the  beatings 
of  its  heart,  and  impel  the  cataract  of  blood 
through  its  mighty  veins  and  arteries  ! 

And  quadrupeds,  too,  depend  upon  God. 
Every  one  of  them  must  have  his  frame  built 
by  the  divine  Architect ;  every  one  of  them 
calls  upon  God  for  his  devising  skill,  his  cre- 
ative power,  his  sustaining  care  ;  for  while  He 
watches  over  the  squirrel  of  our  forest,  He  must 
bestow  his  care  upon  the  elephant  and  rhino- 
ceros of  Asia  and  Africa  ! 

And  man  too  calls  upon  God  every  moment, 
for  his  attention  and  care.  There  are  eight 
hundred  millions  of  people  in  the  world.  In 
each  there  is  a  spine  of  twenty-four  joints,  with 
other  nice  machinery  ;  in  each,  there  is  a  heart, 
and  veins  and  arteries  ;  in  each,  that  heart  is 
beating  at  the  rate  of  seventy  strokes  in  a  min- 


142  NATURAL   RELIGION. 

ute  ;  in  each,  the  whole  blood  of  the  body  is 
changed  every  four  minutes ;  and  all  this  is 
the  work  of  One  God. 

And  remember  that  while  every  blade  of 
grass,  every  insect,  every  fruit,  every  quadru- 
ped, every  living  being  throughout  the  uni- 
verse, is  receiving  the  care  of  the  Almighty, 
He  is  heaving  the  planets  along  in  their  courses, 
and  turning  the  mighty  crank  which  keeps  the 
whirling  spheres  in  motion.  Remember  too 
that  in  each  of  these  worlds  there  are  probably 
races  of  beings  like  those  on  earth,  claiming 
the  care  of  their  Creator  ! 


Chapter    XXX. 

Difficulties  removed. 

I  had  proceeded  thus  far,  in  addressing  my 
attentive  listeners  upon  the  wisdom  and  power 
of  God,  as  displayed  in  his  works,  when  James 
seemed  impatient  to  ask  a  question.  I  there- 
fore paused,  and  he  spoke  as  follows. 

James.  What  you  say,  Mr.  Parley,  fills  my 
mind  with  wonder ;  but  I  am  almost  lost  in 
the  greatness  of  the  subject.  You  seem  to  re- 
present the  way  in  which  God  works,  in  a  very 


parley's   farewell.  143 

different  manner  from  which  I  had  supposed. 
He  is  always  spoken  of  as  having  established 
certain  laws,  and  I  thought  he  left  these  laws 
to  perform  all  the  detail  of  nature's  works. 

Parley.  Tell  me  exactly  how  you  supposed 
that  these  laws  operated. 

James.  Well — in  respect  to  plants,  I  thought 
God  had  ordained  the  seasons,  the  sun,  and 
rain,  and  created  certain  kinds  of  plants,  and 
put  into  each  of  them  a  certain  principle,  or 
power,  which  would  proceed  to  act  in  a  cer- 
tain way,  established  in  the  very  nature  of  these 
things.  Thus  I  thought  all  the  works  of  na- 
ture went  on  by  the  command  of  God,  but 
without  his  personal  attention. 

Parley.  You  supposed  then  that  the  laws  of 
God,  or  the  laws  of  nature,  as  they  are  general- 
ly called,  made  the  plants  grow,  and  caused  the 
races  of  animals  to  continue.  But  the  laws  of 
God,  or  the  laws  of  nature,  are  only  the  ways 
in  which  God  is  observed  to  work.  We  see 
that  plants  grow  from  seeds,  and  we  say  it  is 
a  law  of  nature  that  plants  shall  grow  from 
seeds  ;  but  a  seed  is  not  of  itself  a  creating 
power.  A  seed  is  dead  matter,  and  unless  it 
is  made  to  put  forth  its  shoots,  by  some  creative 


144  NATURAL   RELIGION. 

power,  it  will  remain  as  it  is  forever.  And  a  law 
— what  is  it?  Is  it  a  being  1  Can  a  law  think  ? 
Can  a  law  devise  and  contrive  ?  Can  a  law  cre- 
ate ?  A  law  can  do  none  of  these  things,  and 
when  we  speak  of  the  laws  of  nature,  as  exert- 
ing any  efficient  power  in  carrying  on  the  works 
of  nature,  we  use  language  without  meaning. 
Although  God  works  according  to  certain  laws, 
he  must  give  these  laws  efficacy,  he  must  be 
ever  present  to  sustain  them  and  carry  them 
into  effect. 

James.  But  does  not  God  have  spiritual 
beings  to  assist  him  in  performing  his  vast 
works  ? 

Parley.  That  may  be,  but  even  if  he  does, 
those  beings  must  be  created  by  hirn,  and  be 
dependent  upon  him  for  support.  God  has  given 
you  an  arm  to  work  with,  and  you  can  hoe  the 
ground  and  make  the  plants  grow  ;  but  he  sup- 
plies the  strength  to  your  arm,  and  thus  dis- 
plays as  great  power,  as  if  he  had  done  the 
work  directly.  So  if  he  employs  beings  infe- 
rior to  himself,  as  agents  to  assist  in  attending 
to  the  vast  concerns  of  his  universe,  he  must 
endow  them  all  with  the  requisite  faculties  and 
sustain  them ;  and  thus  he  will  exert  the  same 


parley's  farewell.  145 

extent  of  power  as  if  he  gave  personal  atten- 
tion to  every  operation  of  nature. 

James.  But,  Mr.  Parley,  if  God  gives  us 
all  our  faculties,  does  he  not  control  us,  and  are 
we  not  made  to  act  just  as  he  pleases?  And 
if  so,  how  can  he  punish  us  for  any  of  our  con- 
duct? 

Parley.  You  must  make  one  distinction, 
James,  between  mankind  and  all  other  crea- 
tures. Man  has  mind  and  soul  given  to  him. 
He  has  reason  given  to  him,  which  enables  him 
to  choose  between  good  and  evil.  He  is  there- 
fore left  to  his  own  free  will,  to  act  as  he 
pleases.  All  other  animated  beings  are  guided 
by  instinct,  which  is  not  mind,  but  innate 
intelligence  loaned  by  God  to  animals,  to  teach 
them  to  live  happily  during  their  short  and 
fleeting  existence.  To  these  creatures  instinct 
is  a  law,  and  they  obey  it.  To  us  reason  is 
given,  as  a  lamp  in  darkness,  to  show  us  the 
way  ;  and  the  condition  upon  which  this  high 
endowment  is  bestowed,  is  this — that  if  we 
obey  the  dictates  of  reason  we  shall  be  happy, 
if  not  we  must  be  miserable.  These  are  the 
terms,  and  we  are  free  to  choose  between  good 
and  evil. 

10 


146  NATURAL    RELIGION. 

Thus  while  our  bodies  and  minds  are  created 
by  God,  and  while  they  are  sustained  by  Him, 
we  are  free  agents,  forming  our  own  characters, 
and  shaping  our  own  destinies  for  good  or  ill. 

There  is,  however,  one  consoling  reflection 
in  this  view  of  the  pervading  power  of  God,  and 
that  is,  that  his  care  is  universal.  Jesus  Christ 
said  that  a  sparrow  falls  not  to  the  ground  un- 
noticed, and  that  the  very  hairs  of  the  head  are 
numbered.  How  pleasant  is  it  to  think,  that 
He  who  sustains  the  planets  is  also  the  God  of 
children  ;  and  that  He  who  makes  their  little 
hearts  to  beat,  has  balanced  the  machinery  of 
the  stars.  He  who  will  not  forget  the  concerns 
of  a  world,  will  not  forget  one  of  his  children. 
If  we  commit  ourselves  to  Him,  and  seek  his 
favor,  we  are  safe. 


Chapter  XXXI. 

The  benevolence  of  the  Deity,  displayed  by  the  happiness  of  his  creatures. 

Parley.  If  God,  then,  is  the  creator  of  all 
things — and  if  such  is  His  wisdom  and  power, 
as  proved  by  his  works — it  becomes  a  matter  of 
the  deepest  interest  to  inquire  into  his  disposi- 


FAREWELL.  147 

tion,  with  a  view  to  discover  whether  he  is  a 
kind  and  benevolent  being,  or  a  cruel  and  ma- 
lignant one. 

James.  Surely,  Mr.  Parley,  no  man  can 
think  God  a  cruel  or  malevolent  being. 

Parley.  Well,  but  can  you  prove  that  he  is 
benevolent  ? 

James.  Really  I  cannot  tell,  only  that  I  al- 
ways feel  as  if  God  were  a  kind  being. 

Parley.  And  you  feel  rightly,  but  it  is  well 
to  know  the  ground  on  which  such  feelings 
rest.  And  in  the  first  place,  let  us  con- 
sider how  we  form  an  opinion  of  a  person.  Is 
it  not  by  his  conduct  ?  If  we  find  a  person 
who  is  trying  to  make  all  around  him  happy, 
we  call  him  kind  and  benevolent.  If  we  see  one 
who  takes  pleasure  in  making  others  miserable, 
in  injuring  their  bodies  or  wounding  their  feel- 
ings, we  say  he  is  cruel  and  malevolent.  It  is 
in  the  same  way  we  must  form  our  opinion  of 
God,  by  his  works. 

Let  us  look  abroad  and  see  whether  the 
creatures  God  has  made  be  happy  or  not. 
And  here  we  are  to  take  into  consideration  only 
the  things  that  feel,  for  earth,  stones  and  plants, 
are  mere  matter,  and  are  neither  happy   nor 


14S  NATURAL    RELIGION. 

miserable.  And  what  do  we  see  among  the 
multitude  of  animated  and  sentient  beings 
around  us  1  "  The  air,  the  earth,  the  water,'' 
says  Paley,  "teem  with  delighted  existence. 
In  a  spring  noon,  or  a  summer  evening,  on 
whichever  side  I  turn  my  eyes,  myriads  of 
happy  beings  crowd  upon  my  view.  The  in- 
sect youth  are  on  the  wing.  Swarms  of  new- 
born flies  are  trying  their  pinions  in  the  air. 
Their  sportive  motions,  their  wanton  mazes, 
their  gratuitous  activity,  their  continual  change 
of  place  without  use  or  purpose,  testify  their 
joy,  and  the  exultation  which  they  feel  in  their 
lately  discovered  faculties.  A  bee  amongst 
the  flowers  in  spring  is  one  of  the  most  cheer- 
ful objects  that  can  be  looked  upon.  Its  life 
appears  to  be  all  enjoyment,  so  busy  and  so 
pleased  ;  yet  it  is  only  a  specimen  of  insect 
life,  with  which,  by  reason  of  the  animal  being 
half  domesticated,  we  happen  to  be  better  ac- 
quainted than  we  are  with  that  of  others.  The 
whole  winged  insect  tribe,  it  is  probable,  are 
equally  intent  upon  their  proper  employments, 
and,  under  every  variety  of  constitution,  grati- 
fied, and  perhaps  equally  gratified  by  the  offices 
which  the  Author  of  their  nature  has  assigned 
to  them. 


parley's  farewell.  149 

"  But  the  atmosphere  is  not  the  only  scene 
for  enjoyment  for  the  insect  race.  Plants  are 
covered  with  insects  called  aphides,  greedily 
sucking  their  juices,  and  constantly,  as  it  should 
seem,  in  the  act  of  sucking.  It  cannot  be 
doubted  but  that  this  is  a  state  of  gratification. 
What  else  should  fix  them  so  close  to  the  ope- 
ration and  so  long?  Other  species  are  running 
about  with  an  alacrity  in  their  motion  which 
carries  with  it  every  mark  of  pleasure.  Large 
patches  of  ground  are  sometimes  covered  with 
these  brisk  and  sprightly  natures. 

"If  we  look  to  what  the  waters  produce, 
shoals  of  the  fry  offish  frequent  the  margins  of 
rivers,  of  lakes,  and  of  the  sea  itself.  These 
are  so  happy  that  they  know  not  what  to  do 
with  themselves.  Their  attitudes,  their  viva- 
city, their  leaps  out  of  the  water,  which  I  have 
noticed  a  thousand  times  with  equal  attention 
and  amusement,  all  conduce  to  show  their  ex- 
cess of  spirits,  and  are  simply  the  effects  of  that 
excess. 

"  Walking  by  the  sea-side  in  a  calm  evening, 
upon  a  sandy  shore,  and  with  an  ebbing  tide,  I 
have  frequently  remarked  the  appearance  of  a 
dark  cloud,  or  rather  very  thick  mist,  hanging 


150  NATURAL     RELIGION. 

over  the  edge  of  the  water  to  the  height  perhaps 
of  half  a  yard,  and  of  the  breadth  of  two  or 
three  yards,  stretching  along  the  coast,  as  far 
as  the  eye  could  reach,  and  always  retiring 
with  the  water.  When  this  cloud  came  to  be 
examined,  it  proved  to  be  nothing  else  than  so 
much  space  filled  with  young  shrimps,  in  the 
act  of  bounding  into  the  air,  from  the  shallow 
margin  of  the  water,  or  from  the  wet  sand.  If 
any  motion  of  a  mute  animal  could  express  de- 
light, it  was  this  ;  if  they  had  meant  to  make 
signs  of  their  happiness,  they  could  not  have 
done  it  more  intelligibly.  Suppose,  then, 
what  I  have  no  doubt  of,  each  individual  of  this 
number  to  be  in  a  state  of  actual  enjoyment, 
what  a  sum,  collectively,  of  gratification  and 
pleasure  have  we  here  before  our  view  ! 

"  The  young  of  all  animals  appear  to  me  to 
receive  pleasure  simply  from  the  exercise  of  their 
limbs  and  bodily  faculties,  without  reference 
to  any  end  to  be  obtained,  or  any  use  to  be  an- 
swered by  the  exertion.  A  child,  without  know- 
ing any  thing  of  the  use  of  language,  is  in  a 
high  degree  delighted  with  being  able  to  speak. 
His  incessant  repetition  of  the  few  articu- 
late   sounds,    or  perhaps   of  the   single  word 


parley's   farewell.  151 

he  has  learnt  to  pronounce,  proves  this  point 
clearly. 

"  Nor  is  it  less  pleased  with  its  first  successful 
endeavors  to  walk,  or  rather  to  run,  although 
entirely  ignorant  of  the  importance  of  the  at- 
tainment to  its  future  life,  and  even  without 
applying  it  to  any  present  purpose.  A  child  is 
delighted  with  speaking  without  having  any 
thing  to  say ;  and  with  walking,  without  know- 
ing where  to  go.  And  prior  to  both  these,  I  am 
inclined  to  believe  that  the  waking  hours  of 
infancy  are  agreeably  taken  up  with  the  exer- 
cise of  vision,  or  perhaps,  more  properly  speak- 
ing, with  learning  to  see. 

"  But  it  is  not  for  youth  alone  that  the  Great 
Parent  of  creation  has  provided.  Happiness  is 
found  with  the  purring  cat  no  less  than  with 
the  playful  kitten  ;  in  the  arm-chair  of  dozing 
age,  as  well  as  in  either  the  sprightliness  of  the 
dance,  or  the  animation  of  the  chase." 


152  NATURAL  RELIGION. 


Chapter  XXXII. 

Benevolence  of  the  Deity — Continued. 

If  then  the  creatures  God  has  made  are  hap- 
py, let  us  consider  the  extent  of  that  goodness, 
as  set  forth  by  considering  the  extent  of  the 
animal  creation.  We  must  not  now  confine 
our  attention  to  man,  but  we  must  take  into 
view  the  entire  inhabitants  of  the  globe. 

"  Every  part  of  the  world  is  filled  with  living 
things.  There  are  extensive  marshes,  impene- 
trable forests,  deep  caverns,  and  the  more  ele- 
vated parts  of  lofty  mountains,  where  human 
feet  have  never  trod.  There  is  a  vast  body  of 
water  which  covers  more  than  two  thirds  of  the 
surface  of  the  globe,  and  the  greater  part  of  the 
atmosphere  which  surrounds  the  earth,  which 
men  cannot  occupy  as  permanent  abodes  ;  yet 
these  regions  of  our  world  are  not  left  destitute 
of  inhabitants.  Numerous  tribes  of  animals 
range  through  the  uncultivated  deserts,  and 
find  ample  accommodation,  suited  to  their  na- 
ture, in  rocks  and  mountains,  in  dens  and  caves 
of  the  earth. 


parley's  farewell.  153 

"  The  regions  of  the  air  are  filled  with  winged 
creatures  of  every  kind,  from  the  ostrich  and 
the  eagle  to  the  numerous  tribes  of  flying  in- 
sects almost  invisible  to  the  unassisted  eye. 
The  ocean  teems  with  myriads  of  inhabitants 
which  no  man  can  number,  of  every  form  and 
size,  from  the  mighty  whale  to  the  numerous 
tribes  of  mednsce,  of  which  several  thousands 
of  billions  are  contained  in  one  cubical  mile  of 
water.  Every  sea,  lake  and  river  is  peopled 
with  inhabitants  ;  every  mountain  and  marsh, 
every  wilderness  and  wood  is  plentifully  stocked 
with  birds  and  beasts  and  numerous  species  of 
insects,  all  of  which  find  ample  accommodation, 
and  every  thing  necessary  for  their  comfort  and 
subsistence. 

"  In  short,  every  part  of  matter  appears  to 
be  peopled  ;  almost  every  green  leaf  and  every 
particle  of  dust  has  its  peculiar  inhabitants. 
Not  only  are  the  larger  parts  of  nature  occupied 
with  living  beings,  but  even  the  most  minute 
portions  of  matter  teem  with  animated  exist- 
ence. Every  plant  and  shrub,  and  almost  every 
drop  of  water,  contains  its  respective  inhab- 
itants. Their  number,  in  some  instances,  is  so 
great,  and  their  minuteness  so  astonishing,  that 


154  NATURAL    RELIGION. 

thousands  of  them  are  contained  within  a  space 
not  larger  than  a  grain  of  sand.  In  some 
small  pools,  covered  with  a  greenish  scum,  of 
only  a  few  yards  in  extent,  there  are  more  liv- 
ing creatures  than  there  are  human  beings  on 
the  face  of  the  earth. 

"  Multitudes  of  animated  beings  are  found  in 
situations  and  circumstances  where  we  never 
should  have  expected  to  perceive  the  principle 
of  life.  The  juices  of  animals  and  plants,  cor- 
rupted matter,  smoke,  dry  wood,  the  bark  and 
roots  of  trees,  the  bodies  of  other  animals,  the 
dirty  puddle,  and  even  the  hardest  stones  and 
rocks,  serve  to  lodge,  and  in  some  measure  to 
feed  numerous  tribes  of  living  beings.  The 
number  of  such  creatures  exceeds  all  human 
calculation  and  conception.  There  may  be 
reckoned  more  than  a  hundred  thousand  spe- 
cies of  animated  beings ;  many  of  these  several 
species  containing  individuals  to  the  amount  of 
several  hundreds  of  times  the  number  of  the  hu- 
man inhabitants  of  our  globe.  It  is  supposed  by 
some,  that  the  tremulous  motion  observed  in  the 
air  during  summer,  may  be  produced  by  millions 
of  insects  swarming  in  the  atmosphere  ;  and  it 
has  been  found  that  the  light  which  is  seen  on 


parley's   farewell.  155 

the  surface  of  the  ocean  during  the  nights  of 
summer  is  owing  to  an  innumerable  multitude 
of  small  luminous  worms  or  insects  sporting  in 
the  water !" 


Chapter  XXXIII. 

Benevolence  of  the  Deity — Continued. 


Such  is  the  amazing  extent  and  diversity  of 
the  animal  creation  of  this  earth ;  it  is  a  sub- 
ject which  exceeds  the  utmost  stretch  of  ima- 
gination. And  these  things  are  all  created  for 
enjoyment,  and  they  fulfil  the  design  of  their 
Creator.  Consider  then  the  unbounded  scale 
of  magnificence,  upon  which  God's  benevolence 
is  conducted! 

To  gain  a  still  more  striking  view  of  this 
subject,  let  me  direct  your  attention  to  the  sun. 
I  wish  to  have  you  consider  for  a  moment  its 
magnitude.  I  have  before  said  that  it  is  337,- 
000  times  as  large  as  our  world.  It  is  more  than 
300  times  as  large  as  all  the  planets  and  com- 
ets of  our  solar  system.  It  is  883,000  miles  in 
diameter,  and  about  2,700,000  miles  around  it. 


156  NATURAL    RELIGION. 

If  a  railroad  car  were  to  travel  at  the  rate  of 
20  miles  an  hour,  it  would  require  about  18 
years  to  go  once  around  it. 

You  have  heard  perhaps  of  Mount  Etna, 
in  the  island  of  Sicily.  It  is  very  lofty,  and  a 
person  may  climb  to  the  top  of  it.  When  there, 
you  look  down  upon  the  whole  island  of  Sicily, 
as  upon  a  map.  You  see  numerous  islands,  some 
of  them  volcanic,  and  pouring  forth  their  col- 
umns of  smoke.  You  see  vast  tracts  of  the 
ocean,  seeming  to  stretch  out  and  mingle  in 
the  distance,  with  the  sky.  Yet  this  glorious 
prospect  is  included  within  a  space  240  miles 
across,  or  754  miles  in  circumference  ;  and  the 
surface  of  the  sun  contains  53,776,000  land- 
scapes as  extensive  as  this  !  If  you  were  to 
look  all  over  the  sun,  bestowing  two  hours  upon 
each  of  these  views  of  240  miles'  diameter,  it 
would  employ  you  24,554  years  to  accomplish 
the  task  ! 

Such  is  the  magnitude  of  the  sun.  And  let 
us  consider  that  this  revolves  on  its  axis,  once 
in  twenty-five  days  and  a  half.  Let  us  consi- 
der too  what  vast  operations  are  going  on  upon 
its  surface.  It  is  now  generally  supposed  to 
be  a  solid  body,  surrounded  by  a  brilliant  at- 


parley's  farewell.  157 

mosphere  of  clouds,  which  send  light  and  heat 
to  the  other  planets.  Yet  this  curious  cover- 
ing is  continually  changing,  and  dark  spots  are 
often  seen,  consisting  of  openings  or  rents  in  it, 
some  of  which  are  more  than  50,000  miles 
across.  These  openings  are  often  formed  with 
great  rapidity,  and  it  has  been  observed  that 
the  edges  of  the  clouds  sometimes  fly  at  the 
rate  of  a  thousand  miles  in  an  hour.  Besides 
all  this,  there  is  very  little  doubt  that  the  sun  is 
travelling  along  through  the  boundless  regions 
of  space,  at  a  rate  which  outstrips  conception. 

And  with  such  views  of  the  vastness  of  the 
sun's  bulk,  and  the  stupendous  nature  of  its  mo- 
tions, and  of  the  operations  upon  its  surface,  let 
us  consider  the  purposes  which  it  was  designed 
to  answer  in  this,  our  world.  Almost  all  the 
benign  energies  which  are  going  forward  in  the 
atmosphere,  the  waters  and  the  earth,  derive 
their  origin  from  the  sun.  Its  light  is  diffused 
over  every  region,  and  produces  all  the  pleasure 
which  is  received  from  sight,  all  the  beauty 
which  belongs  to  color. 

"  By  its  action,  vegetables  are  formed  from 
dead  and  inorganic  matter ;  by  its  influence,  the 
sap  ascends  through  their  myriads  of  vessels,  the 


158  NATURAL    RELIGION. 

flowers  glow  with  the  richest  hues,  the  fruits 
of  autumn  are  matured,  and  become,  in  their 
turn,  the  support  of  animals  and  of  man.  By 
its  heat,  the  waters  of  the  rivers  and  the  ocean 
are  attenuated  and  carried  to  the  higher  re- 
gions of  the  atmosphere,  where  they  circulate 
in  the  form  of  vapor,  till  they  descend  again  in 
showers,  to  supply  the  sources  of  the  rivers, 
and  to  fertilize  the  soil.  By  the  same  agency, 
all  winds  are  produced  which  purify  the  atmos- 
phere by  keeping  it  in  perpetual  motion,  which 
propel  our  ships  across  the  ocean,  dispel  nox- 
ious vapors,  prevent  pestilential  effluvia,  and 
rid  our  inhabitants  of  a  thousand  nuisances. 
By  its  attractive  energy,  the  tides  of  the  ocean 
are  modified  and  regulated,  the  earth  conduct- 
ed in  its  annual  course,  and  the  moon  sustained 
and  guided  in  her  motions  ! 

"  Its  influence  descends  even  to  the  mineral 
kingdom,  and  is  felt  in  the  chemical  composi- 
tions and  decompositions  of  the  elements  of 
nature.  The  disturbances  in  the  electric  bal- 
ance of  the  atmosphere,  which  produce  the 
phenomena  of  thunder,  lightning  and  rain,  and 
the  varieties  of  terrestrial  magnetism  ;  the  slow 
degradation  of  the  solid    constituents    of  the 


parley's  farewell.  159 

globe,  and  their  diffusion  among  the  waters  of 
the  ocean,  may  all  be  traced,  directly  or  indi- 
rectly, to  the  agency  of  the  sun.  It  illumi- 
nates and  cheers  all  the  inhabitants  of  the  earth, 
from  the  polar  regions  to  the  torrid  zone. 
When  its  rays  gild  the  eastern  horizon  after  the 
darkness  of  the  night,  it  seems  to  produce  a  new 
creation.  The  landscape  is  adorned  with  a 
thousand  shades  and  colors  ;  millions  of  insects 
awake  and  bask  in  its  rays  ;  the  birds  start 
from  their  slumbers,  and  fill  the  groves  with 
their  melody ;  the  flocks  and  herds  express 
their  joy  in  hoarser  acclamations  ;  '  man  goeth 
forth  to  his  work  and  to  his  labor;'  all  nature 
smiles,  and  'the  hills  rejoice  on  every  side.5 

"  Without  the  influence  of  this  august  lumi- 
nary, a  universal  gloom  would  ensue,  and  sur- 
rounding worlds,  with  all  their  trains  of  satel- 
lites, would  be  shrouded  in  perpetual  darkness. 
This  earth  would  become  a  lifeless  mass,  a 
dreary  waste,  a  rude  lump  of  inactive  matter, 
without  beauty  or  order.  No  longer  should 
we  behold  meadows  clothed  with  verdure,  the 
flowers  shedding  their  perfumes,  or  <  the  valleys 
covered  with  corn.'  The  feathered  songsters 
would  no  longer  chant  their  melodious  notes  ;  all 


160  NATURAL     RELIGION. 

human  activity  would  cease,  universal  silence 
would  reign  undisturbed,  and  this  huge  globe 
of  land  and  water  would  return  to  its  original 
chaos." 

It  appears  to  me  that  the  very  statement  of 
these  facts  is  not  only  sufficient  to  prove  the 
benevolence  of  God,  but  to  prove  that  his  bene- 
volence surpasses  the  utmost  bounds  of  human 
thought.  He  created  the  earth,  and  all  the 
creatures  upon  it ;  and  he  created  the  sun, 
making  it  precisely  what  it  should  be,  to  be- 
stow happiness  upon  the  myriad  inhabitants  of 
the  earth.  Here  is  evidently  a  grand  design 
of  benevolence,  and  adequate  power  success- 
fully exerted  to  carry  it  into  effect.  Who  but 
an  Omnipotent  Being  could  have  made  the 
sun  ;  who  but  a  good,  and  kind,  and  merciful 
Being  would  have  made  such  a  sun  to  produce 
such  results? 


Chapter  XXXIV. 

Benevolence  of  the  Deity — Continued. 

But  this  view  of  the  benevolence   of  God, 
grand  as  it  is,  becomes  enlarged  and  amplified 


parley's  farewell.  161 

by  considering  that  this  world  is  probably  not 
the  only  inhabited  globe.  There  is  no  reason 
to  doubt  that  all  the  stars  and  planets  in  the 
sky  are  inhabited  worlds,  and  some  of  them  are 
known  to  be  vastly  larger  than  our  earth.  If 
the  sun  were  inhabited  as  thickly  as  some  parts, 
of  our  earth,  with  human  beings,  it  would  con- 
tain S50,000  times  as  many  people  as  the  earth. 
If  it  had  the  same  proportion  of  other  animated 
beings,  how  immensely  vast  would  be  the  num- 
ber of  its  living  things  !  And  on  all  these,  we 
have  a  right  to  infer  that  God's  goodness  is  be- 
stowed, and  that  they  are  happy— and  not  on 
these  only,  but  on  the  myriad  inhabitants  of 
all  the  other  countless  worlds. 

Nor  must  we  confine  our  view  to  the  pleas- 
ures of  mere  animal  life.  Let  us  consider  the 
faculties  of  man,  and  see  how  manv  and  how 
exquisite  the  pleasures  are  which  we  derive  from 
them.  What  enjoyment  do  parents  find  in  the 
love  and  care  they  bestow  upon  their  children  ! 
How  sweet  and  blissful  the  affection  which 
children  return  to  parents  !  How  pleasant  is 
the  love  of  brothers  and  sisters — of  relations 
and  friends  ! 

And  then,  let  us  reflect  upon  the  beauty  that 
11 


162  NATURAL   RELIGION. 

is  spread  over  the  face  of  nature.  Why  are 
flowers  so  beautiful,  and  so  infinitely  varied,  if 
not  to  bestow  pleasure  upon  man?  Why,  if 
God  is  not  benevolent,  has  he  made  hills  and 
valleys  and  mountains,  and  rolling  waves,  and 
rushing  waters,  so  beautiful?  Why  has  he 
made  the  forms  and  motions  of  birds  so  charm- 
ing, if  not  to  give  pleasure?  If  the  Creator 
did  not  intend  to  delight  us,  why  did  he  make 
our  little  ruby-throated  humming-bird,  and 
polish  him  over  like  burnished  steel?  Why  did 
he  create  the  crested  humming-bird  of  Brazil, 
covered  with  all  the  sparkling  tints  of  precious 
stones? 

If  he  is  not  a  benevolent  Being,  why  did  he 
spread  sublimity  over  the  mountains,  and  teach 
man  to  feel  it?  Why  did  he  robe  the  heavens 
in  azure,  and  make  a  myriad  race  of  beings  to 
feel  their  mingled  majesty  and  beauty?  Why 
did  he  clothe  all  vegetable  nature  in  green,  and 
make  human  beings  with  eyes  to  relish  it  above 
all  other  hues?  Why  did  he  teach  the  birds 
to  sing,  the  waters  to  murmur  forth  melody, 
the  trees  to  bend  in  beauty  and  grace  to  the 
pressure  of  the  breeze?  Why,  if  God  is  not  a 
beneficent  Being,  did  he   make  this  world  so 


-o^Ci 


Crested  Humming  Bird,  p.  62. 


parley's   farewell.  163 

pleasant — endow  it  with  light,  and  color,  and 
music,  and  perfumes,  and  place  beings  here 
adapted  to  the  appreciation  and  enjoyment  of 
these  things? 

And  how  wide  and  varied  is  the  field  which 
the  gift  of  imagination  bestows.  This  is  like  a 
spyglass,  which  enables  us  to  look  all  over  the 
world,  and  even  into  the  wide  and  fanciful  re- 
gions of  fiction,  and  contemplate  all  that  may 
be  there.  The  story  of  Robinson  Crusoe  is 
almost  wholly  a  work  of  imagination,  but  how 
much  pleasure  has  been  derived  from  the  read- 
ing. Think  of  the  thousand  amusing  works 
of  fiction,  some  of  which  have  been  read  bv 
millions,  and  consider  the  vast  amount  of  en- 
joyment that  has  been  gained  from  them. 

And  then  think  of  the  pleasure  of  acquiring 
knowledge.  Every  new  idea  is  like  a  bright 
guinea  to  a  child.  How  often  do  we  see  chil- 
dren sitting  quietly,  but  listening  intently,  by 
the  side  of  persons  who  are  talking  over  some 
piece  of  news,  or  carrying  on  some  discussion, 
and  at  such  times  how  do  their  eyes  glisten, 
and  what  interest  is  depicted  in  their  counte- 
nances ! 

And  then  consider  how  much  pleasure  there 


164  NATURAL    RELIGION. 

is,  as  we  advance  to  maturity,  in  entering 
upon  and  pursuing  the  more  serious  plans  and 
duties  of  life.  Even  difficulties  themselves  are 
sources  of  pleasure.  A  man  in  journeying  often 
looks  back  upon  a  hill  that  he  has  surmounted 
and  passed,  with  a  degree  of  delight,  which 
more  than  compensates  him  for  the  anxiety  and 
discouragement  with  which  he  began  to  ascend 
it.  It  is  precisely  so  in  the  journey  which  we 
all  pursue — we  meet  with  obstacles,  and  for  a 
time  they  appall  and  disturb  us,  but  we  per- 
severe, and  perseverance  turns  them  into  inex- 
haustible sources  of  pleasant  reflection. 

These  are  some  of  the  pleasures  which  spring 
from  the  moral  and  intellectual  faculties  of 
man.  They  are  perhaps  but  little  remarked 
by  us,  when  we  are  computing  the  treasures  of 
this  world.  We  are  apt  to  look  upon  wealth, 
and  other  substantial  possessions,  as  our  best 
sources  of  happiness.  But  this  is  a  great  mis- 
take. The  mind  of  man  is  the  highest  portion 
of  his  nature,  and  affords  the  most  abundant 
and  the  richest  harvest  of  joys. 

Nor  are  we  at  liberty  to  suppose  that  the 
human  race  is  the  only  class  of  intellectual  be- 
ings in  the  universe.     Analogy  teaches  us  that 


parley's  farewell.  165 

other  worlds  are  peopled  with  beings  who  pos- 
sess mind  as  well  as  we  ;  and  probably  their 
numbers  are  proportioned  to  the  worlds  they 
inhabit.  If  this  be  so,  how  many  millions  of 
people  must  there  be  in  the  sun  ;  in  Saturn  and 
its  seven  moons  ;  in  Jupiter  and  its  four  moons, 
and  in  all  the  other  orbs  attached  to  our  solar 
system.  And  finally,  how  many  intelligences 
must  there  be  in  the  myriads  of  worlds  attach- 
ed to  the  starry  suns  which  glitter  in  the  firma- 
ment ;  and  of  those  too  which  shine  far  beyond 
the  utmost  reach  of  our  telescopes  ! 

It  is  impossible  to  pursue  contemplations 
like  these,  and  not  be  impressed  with  the  good- 
ness of  God.  Every  where,  we  see  that  hap- 
piness is  enjoyed  ;  every  where,  we  see  that 
happiness  is  the  great  end  and  design  of  crea- 
tion. We  see  an  infinite  variety  of  living 
things,  endowed  with  feeling,  and  of  course 
competent  to  enjoy ;  and  we  see  the  most  mag- 
nificent worlds  fitted  up,  and  the  most  wonder- 
ful contrivances  resorted  to,  and  all  evidently 
to  make  these  creatures  happy.  Every  where 
we  see  things  which  would  be  utterly  useless 
and  aimless,  were  they  not  designed  for  happi- 
ness ;  for  while  they  produce  this,  they  accom- 


166  NATURAL   RELIGION. 

plish  no  other  object  that  might  not  have  been 
as  well  attained  without  it.  Is  not  the  De- 
signer, the  Contriver,  and  the  Creator  of  all 
these  things  a  Beneficent  Being? 


Chapter   XXXV. 

Difficulties  answered. 


Having  spoken  to  my  little  friends,  as  re- 
corded in  the  preceding  chapters,  we  parted, 
and  I  did  not  see  them  for  several  days.  But, 
at  length,  they  came,  and  told  me  that  they  had 
been  thinking  a  great  deal  of  what  I  had  said 
to  them.  The  conversation  then  proceeded  as 
follows. 

James.  I  do  not  doubt,  Mr.  Parley,  at  all, 
that  God  is  a  good  and  kind  Being  ;  but  after  I 
went  from  here  the  other  day,  I  had  the  tooth- 
ache, very  hard.  Then  a  little  child  that  I 
saw  fell  down  and  hurt  its  nose  very  badly  ; 
and  I  began  to  think  that  there  was  a  great 
deal  of  misery  in  the  world  ;  and  now  I  wish  to 
know  if  God  does  not  cause  this  misery,  and  if 
he  does,  how  can  he  be  a  good  Being? 


parley's    farewell.  167 

Parley.  These  are  questions,  James,  which 
have  puzzled  a  great  many  wise  people  ;  but  I 
think  I  can  give  you  an  answer  that  ought  to 
be  satisfactory.  I  have  had  occasion  frequent- 
ly to  remark  that  God  works  according  to  cer- 
tain rules,  or  laws,  and  that  in  pursuing  his 
plans  he  employs  certain  instruments. 

Now,  in  making  the  human  frame,  it  was  not 
his  intention  to  make  it  absolutely  perfect,  so 
that  it  should  be  superior  to  accident,  injury, 
or  decay.  He  made  our  bodies  that  they 
might  be  hurt,  or  become  sick,  if  not  constantly 
taken  care  of.  And  what  is  the  instrument  he 
adopted  to  induce  us  constantly  to  take  care  of 
our  bodies,  so  as  to  prevent  their  becoming  sick 
or  injured?  The  instrument  is  pain.  If  you 
stub  your  toe  against  the  ground,  or  pinch  your 
finger,  or  cut  your  flesh,  or  break  or  bruise  any 
part  of  your  frame,  you  suffer  acute  pain, 
and  this  makes  you  careful  not  to  do  so  again. 
In  other  words,  the  fear  of  pain  induces  you 
constantly  to  take  care  of  your  body. 

Pain,  then,  is  an  ever  wakeful  sentinel, 
placed  by  God  within  the  body,  to  watch  over 
and  guard  it.  And  you  will  observe  that  this 
watch  is    most    careful  where  most   needed ; 


168  NATURAL    RELIGION. 

you  will  see  that  at  those  points  which  are 
most  weak,  or  most  exposed,  the  sentinel  is  pe- 
culiarly active,  and  ready  to  punish  an  assault 
with  peculiar  vigor.  The  eye  is  a  very  deli- 
cate organ,  and  therefore  needs  peculiar  care. 
If  it  is  injured,  the  pain  is  very  sharp,  and 
therefore  we  are  taught  to  proportion  our 
care  to  the  delicacy  of  the  organ.  The  nose  is 
prominent,  and  from  its  position  particularly 
exposed  to  injury  ;  the  sentinel  pain  is  there- 
fore made  to  guard  it  with  peculiar  care ;  for 
every  one  has  found  that  a  very  slight  blow 
upon  the  nose  causes  keen  suffering,  and  there- 
fore every  one  takes  good  care  of  it.  I  observe 
that  you  smile  at  this,  but  is  it  not  true?  Do 
we  not  see  that  the  Creator  of  man  has  foreseen 
and  provided  for  all  things  ?  and  do  we  not  see 
that  even  pain,  which  would  at  first  seem  to  be 
unmitigated  and  unalloyed  evil,  is  made  to  per- 
form an  office  of  real  kindness? 

James.  Well,  Mr.  Parley,  I  must  confess 
you  have  given  me  a  better  answer  than  I  sup- 
posed you  could.  But  it  seems  to  me  you 
make  it  out  that  pain  is  really  a  good  thing. 

Parley.  It  appears  to  me,  James,  that  pain 
actually  produces  in  this  world  infinitely  more 


parley's  farewell.  169 

good  than  evil,  for  it  certainly  operates  to  in- 
duce that  care,  caution  and  watchfulness  which 
seem  to  be  necessary  to  preserve  our  bodies 
from  injury  and  keep  them  in  a  sound  state. 
But  we  must  look  a  little  farther  into  the  sub- 
ject. It  is  obvious  that  the  plan  of  the  Crea- 
tor was  to  produce  a  succession  of  generations, 
and  that  in  order  to  accomplish  this,  one  gene- 
ration must  die  to  give  place  to  another ; 
because,  if  the  several  races  were  to  go  on 
increasing,  and  none  were  to  perish,  the  earth 
would  soon  be  so  full  of  inhabitants  that  they 
could  not  all  find  support. 

Death,  then,  is  the  doom  of  all,  and  this  may 
come  from  disease,  from  accident,  or  from  old 
age.  Now  let  us  consider  a  moment  the  sub- 
ject of  death,  and  see  how  wisely  and  how 
beneficently  even  this  is  managed. 

Death  may  take  place  from  disease,  or  acci- 
dent, or  a  want  of  air,  or  food  or  warmth ;  but 
it  was  the  intention  of  our  Maker  to  protect  us 
against  death  until  we  should  have  arrived  at 
old  age.  Accordingly,  he  made  all  the  causes 
of  death,  whether  immediate  or  remote,  pain- 
ful. If  we  have  not  air  to  breathe,  we  suffo- 
cate and  die  ;  it  is  therefore  provided  that  suf- 


170  NATURAL   RELIGION. 

focation  shall  be  yery  painful,  so  that  we  may 
take  care  to  avoid  it.  We  must  have  warmth, 
or  we  shall  perish.  Cold  therefore  makes  us 
suffer,  and  compels  us  to  obtain  heat.  We 
must  have  food,  or  we  die.  Hunger,  therefore, 
forces  us  to  seek  it.  And  it  should  be  remarked 
that  in  all  these  cases  of  air,  warmth  and  food, 
the  point  of  comfort  is  the  point  of  health  ,  and 
thus  God  has  induced  us  to  take  care  of  our 
health  and  prolong  our  lives,  by  making  that 
which  is  destructive,  painful,  and  that  which  is 
healthful,  pleasant.  And  one  thing  farther  is  to 
be  considered,  that  the  fear  of  death  is  a  natu- 
ral instinct  which  makes  us  shrink  from  it,  un- 
til old  age  or  sickness  brings  us  to  the  period 
when  we  must  die,  and  then  this  instinctive 
dread  usually  vanishes.  We  see  that  even 
here  there  is  wisdom  and  beneficence  ;  for  if  it 
were  not  for  the  dread  of  death,  how  often 
would  wicked  men,  in  some  fit  of  passion,  dis- 
appointment, or  despair,  take  their  own  lives  ! 

James.  But,  Mr.  Parley,  I  thought  wicked 
men  dreaded  death  because  their  consciences 
troubled  them. 

Paisley.  And  you  thought  right ;  but  that 
is  another  species  of  fear,  arising  from  a  man's 


parley's   farewell.  171 

reflections  upon  his  own  bad  conduct.  This  is 
a  species  of  anxiety  and  fear  which  pursues 
the  evildoer,  and  which  is  intended  to  warn 
men  against  bringing  moral  disease  upon  their 
souls  ;  but  I  shall  perhaps  have  occasion  to 
speak  to  you  on  this  subject  at  another  time. 

James.  If  I  understand  you,  then,  Mr.  Par- 
ley, your  argument  is  this.  It  is  the  design  of 
God  that  man  shall  live  to  old  age,  but  as  death 
may  come  at  any  time,  through  accident  or  dis- 
ease, God  has  made  these  painful,  and  thus  in- 
duced mankind  to  take  all  the  care  and  use  all 
the  means  necessary  to  prolong  life. 

Parley.  Yes,  that  is  my  idea,  exactly  :  and 
I  wish  you  to  notice  one  thing  farther  ;  which 
is,  that  all  these  means  are  pleasant  and  bestow 
gratification.  It  is  pleasant  to  eat,  to  drink, 
to  breathe  the  fresh  air,  to  feel  the  genial 
warmth  of  a  fire  in  winter  ;  and  all  these 
are  means  of  health,  and  tend  to  long  life. 
Now  if  God  had  been  a  cruel  and  malignant 
being,  he  might  have  made  these  things,  which 
are  now  sources  of  enjoyment,  sources  of  dis- 
tress. He  might  have  surrounded  us  with 
misery,  and  strewed  every  path  of  life  with 
thorns  ;   and  if  he  had  been  an  evil  spirit,  he 


172  NATURAL    RELIGION. 

would  have  done  so.  His  having  taken  a  con- 
trary course,  and  made  the  means  of  preserving 
life  and  perfecting  health,  agreeable,  is  proof 
that  He  is  a  benignant  Being. 

James.  But,  Mr.  Parley,  if  God  is  good, 
and  kind,  and  benevolent,  why  does  he  permit 
death,  and  accident,  and  disease? 

Parley.  That  is  a  shrewd  question,  my  boy, 
and  shows  that  you  think  and  reflect  upon  what 
I  tell  you.  But  I  must  frankly  confess  that  I 
cannot  tell  you  why  God  does  permit  disease, 
and  accident  and  death:  all  we  know  is,  that 
his  design  manifestly  is  not  to  make  man's 
existence  here  a  state  of  perfect  happiness. 
The  wisdom  of  making  such  a  world  as 
this,  is  a  subject  too  vast  for  the  compass  of 
human  judgment.  .  But  God  having  planned 
such  a  world,  we  can  see  that  he  has  executed 
it  with  amazing  skill  and  power ;  and  that 
while  he  even  permits  evil,  the  great  design 
and  tendency  of  all  things,  of  all  his  laws  and 
modes  of  action  in  the  various  kingdoms  of  na- 
ture, is  to  produce  happiness  :  and  we  see  that, 
although  there  is  much  misery  and  much  evil, 
still  the  amount  of  good  and  the  sum  of  en- 
joyment infinitely  overbalances  these. 


parley's  farewell.  173 


Chapter  XXXVI. 

Difficulties —  Continued. 

James.  But,  Mr.  Parley,  could  not  God 
have  made  all  the  good  of  this  world  without 
the  evil? 

Parley.  Certainly  not,  for  many  of  our 
choicest  pleasures  are  derived  from  the  exist- 
ence of  evil. 

James.    I  really  cannot  understand  that. 

Parley.  I  will  endeavor  to  make  you  under- 
stand my  meaning.  Do  you  recollect  that  the 
other  day  your  sister  Jane  had  a  slight  fever, 
and  that  you  was  very  anxious  lest  she  should 
be  very  sick  ;  and  do  you  remember,  when  the 
doctor  said,  one  morning,  that  she  was  much 
better,  and  would  be  well  in  a  day  or  two,  how 
you  capered  about  the  room  from  very  joy? 

James.  I  remember  it  very  well,  and  I  was 
so  happy  because  I  was  relieved  from  the  fear 
I  had  that  she  was  going  to  be  Very  sick. 

Parley.  Yes,  and  thus  fear  was  the  real  ori- 
gin of  your  happiness,  and  happiness  too  of  the 
most  exquisite  ldnd.  I  think  this  shows  you 
that  all  the  good  of  this  world  could  not  have 
been  obtained  without  the  existence  of  evil. 


174  NATURAL  RELIGION. 

James.  That's  very  odd — I  did  not  think  of 
that.  It  really  seems  to  me,  Mr.  Parley,  that 
you  pick  up  something  good  everywhere ;  and 
you  remind  me  of  the  bee  that  is  said  to  get 
pure  honey  from  poisonous  flowers. 

Parley.  I  am  much  obliged  to  you,  James, 
for  the  compliment,  but  I  do  not  wish  to  push 
the  argument  beyond  the  truth.  You  see  that 
fear,  then,  is  a  source  of  happiness  ;  and  fear 
is  founded  upon  the  uncertainty  of  all  earthly 
things.  If  there  were  no  accident,  no  pain,  no 
sickness,  no  death,  there  could  be  no  fear ; 
and  that  exquisite  delight  you  experienced 
when  you  were  assured  that  Jane  was  to  get 
well,  soon,  could  never  have  been  enjoyed. 

Hope,  too,  is  the  offspring  of  fear  ;  for  if 
there  were  nothing  to  fear,  there  would  be 
nothing  to  hope.  And  how  many  are  the 
beautiful  and  pleasant  emotions,  which  come 
to  the  heart  from  hope  !  Are  you  not  every 
day  hoping  for  something  pleasant  to-morrow, 
or  at  least  in  the  future ;  and  do  you  not  enjoy 
almost  as  much  in  hoping  as  you  could  in  real- 
izing your  wishes?  And  yet,  this  inexhausti- 
ble source  of  pleasure  would  be  dried  up  if 
there  were  no  evils  in  life.     If  everything  was 


parley's   farewell.  175 

sure  to  be  good,  there  would  be  no  doubt,  no 
contingency,  and  no  expectation,  which  are  the 
very  basis  of  hope. 

James.  Really,  Mr.  Parley,  you  would  al- 
most make  it  out  that  evils  are  benefits. 

Parley.  I  am  indeed  ready  to  adopt  the 
opinion  that  many  of  the  apparent  evils  of  life 
are  not  real  ones.  But  what  I  mean  to  say 
is  this,  that  sickness  and  pain  are  not  as 
great  evils  as  they  are  often  thought  to  be.  I 
maintain  that  they  bring  in  their  train  many 
mitigations  and  compensations,  and  that  in 
striking  the  balance  between  the  happiness  and 
misery  of  life,  we  should  consider  that  many  of 
its  apparent  evils  are  reduced  to  almost  nothing, 
by  deducting  from  them  the  good  that  attends 
them.  I  am  now  laying  out  of  view  the  moral 
benefits  we  derive  from  the  discipline  of  care, 
toil,  disappointment  and  sorrow  ;  I  am  not  con- 
sidering the  good  account  to  which  the  Chris- 
tian is  taught  to  turn  the  evils  of  life.  These 
views  belong  rather  to  a  treatise  on  Christian 
Morals  than  a  discussion  of  Natural  Religion ; 
for  this  permits  us  only  to  consider  the  light 
furnished  by  nature,  to  illustrate  the  character 
of  the  Deity.     And  having  no  other  light  than 


176  NATURAL    RELIGION. 

this,  we  see  that  the  evils  in  this  world  are  no 
sound  argument  against  the  goodness  of  God  ; 
for  they  come  to  us  half  in  the  guise  of  bles- 
sings ;  and  even  admitting  that  they  diminish 
the  value  of  existence,  life  is  still  a  great  and 
good  possession.  There  is  not  one  person  in  a 
thousand  who  does  not  experience  ten  enjoy- 
ments to  one  misery. 

Death  being  the  termination  of  life,  would 
seem  to  be  in  itself  an  evil,  but,  as  I  have  said 
before,  the  design  of  God  being  to  make  this 
earth  the  theatre  of  a  succession  of  genera- 
tions, it  became  necessary  that  one  should  die 
to  give  place  to  another.  But  death,  even  if 
there  were  not  a  future  state,  would  furnish  no 
argument  against  the  goodness  of  God  ;  for  all 
it  could  prove  would  be  that  he  had  taken 
away  a  boon  from  one  to  bestow  it  upon  ano- 
ther. The  earth  is  kept  full  of  happiness,  as  it 
is,  and  this  is  all  that  could  be  done  if  the  same 
generations  were  endowed  with  a  perpetual  ex- 
istence. 

And  if  death,  with  the  pain  which  attends 
it,  be  considered  evils  belonging  to  the  present 
system,  we  are  by  no  means  sure  that  these  are 
not  fully  compensated  by  the  joy  that  springs 


parley's   farewell.  177 

from  youth,  and  the  pleasures  which  attend  a 
progressive  existence  ;  and  more  than  all,  by  the 
bliss  which  flows  from  the  relation  of  protecting 
parents  and  confiding  children  ;  a  state  of  things 
which,  of  course,  can  never  exist  among  immor- 
tal beings.  If  then  it  were  the  design  of  the  Cre- 
ator to  make  this  earth  yield  the  greatest  balance 
of  happiness,  no  one  can  prove  that  the  wisest 
course  has  not  been  taken  to  secure  this  object. 
And  however  this  may  be,  we  can  see  clearly 
that  it  was  the  design  of  the  Creator  to  make  a 
happy  world,  even  while  he  permitted  its  hap- 
piness to  be  limited,  and  that  this  design  has 
been  fulfilled.  The  proof,  therefore,  that  God 
is  a  benevolent  Being,  is  complete. 


Chapter    XXXVII. 

Difficulties — Continued. 

James.    I  do  not  see,  Mr.  Parley,  but  what 

you  have  entirely  answered  my    difficulty,   so 

far  as  relates  to  mankind.      But  we  see  that 

the  mere  animal  creation  suffer  pain,  disease, 

12 


178  NATURAL    RELIGION. 

and  death.  How  can  this  be  reconciled  with 
the  benevolence  of  the  Creator? 

Parley.  By  taking  a  general  view  of  the  ani- 
mal races.  These  are  almost  universally  hap- 
py. They  are  subject  to  few  diseases  and  few 
casualties  of  a  painful  nature.  If  they  are  beset 
with  sickness,  it  is  usually  short  in  its  duration, 
either  being  speedily  cured,  or  soon  terminating 
in  death.  If  an  animal  is  wounded,  it  is  gene- 
rally healed  in  a  very  short  period  if  it  does  not 
end  fatally.  Beside,  the  suffering  of  animals  is 
probably  not  as  acute  as  that  of  human  beings. 
This,  however,  can- furnish  no  excuse  for  our 
inflicting  unnecessary  pain  upon  them,  for  they 
certainly  feel,  and  a  person  who  wantonly  tor- 
ments them,  is  guilty  of  an  odious  crime. 

Jam 25.  But,  Mr.  Parley,  why,  if  God  is  a 
good  Being,  does  he  make  animals  to  suffer 
at  all? 

Parley.  I  am  not  sure  that  I  can  fully  an- 
swer your  question,  but  by  considering  that  the 
plan  of  the  Creator  contemplated  a  succession  of 
generations  on  this  earth,  and  that  some  means 
must  be  provided  for  terminating  the  existence 
of  every  living  thing.  And  in  respect  to  the  mere 
animal  creation,  the  same  system  is  pursued  as 


parley's   farewell.  179 

in  respect  to  man.  Life  may  be  terminated  at 
any  time,  by  accident  or  disease,  and  at  all 
events,  when  the  limit  assigned  to  the  duration 
of  life  shall  be  reached. 

Now,  although  we  may  not  be  able  to  say 
why  God  has  permitted  disease  and  accident  to 
inflict  pain  upon  animals,  we  are  still  able  to 
see  that,  on  tiie  whole,  they  were  created  for 
happiness  ;  that,  on  the  whole,  they  enjoy  hap- 
piness. If  we  take  into  view  all  the  insects, 
birds,  reptiles,  fishes,  and  quadrupeds  that  are 
created,  it  would  seem  probable  that  not  one  in 
a  thousand  meets  with  casualty  or  sickness  of 
any  kind,  from  the  beginning  of  life  to  its  close. 
By  far  the  greater  proportion  go  on  from  the 
morning  to  the  sunset  of  existence,  in  a  perpet- 
ual series  of  enjoyments.  The  amount  then  of 
good  over  the  evil  in  animal  existence,  is  vast 
beyond  our  comprehension,  and  stands  as  an 
imperishable  monument  attesting  the  benefi- 
cence of  the  Creator. 

James.  But,  Mr.  Parley,  there  is  one  thing, 
still,  that  troubles  me,  and  that  is,  that  through- 
out the  world,  we  see  the  stronger  animals 
preying  upon  the  weaker  ones.  The  spider 
feasts  upon  the  fly  ;   the  hawk  upon  the  lesser 


180  NATURAL     RELIGION. 

birds  ;  the  eagle  upon  the  rabbit  and  the  hare  ; 
the  fox  upon  such  birds  and  quadrupeds  as  he 
can  master  ;  the  wolf  upon  the  fawn  and  the 
deer  ;  the  lion  upon  the  antelope ;  and  man  up- 
on whatever  may  please  his  appetite.  How  is 
such  a  system  as  this,  compatible  with  the 
goodness  of  God? 

Parley.  I  think  this  question  may  be  an- 
swered to  your  satisfaction,  but  I  must  beg 
your  particular  attention  to  what  I  have  to  say 
on  the  subject.  You  will  remark  that  it  is  a 
provision  of  nature  that  every  element,  and 
almost  every  part  of  every  element,  shall  be 
provided  with  inhabitants.  To  accomplish 
this,  there  is  every  where  a  principle  of  fertil- 
ity, by  which  most  animals  increase  with  great 
rapidity,  if  not  checked.  The  codfish  pro- 
duces more  eggs  each  year  than  there  are 
people  in  the  whole  United  States  ;  and  we 
might  say  nearly  the  same  with  respect  to 
many  other  creatures. 

The  result  of  this  plan  of  nature  is,  that  all 
parts  of  creation  are  filled  with  living  beings  ; 
and  as  life  generally  gives  happiness,  this  se- 
cures a  great  good :  but  it  is  necessary  that  some 
scheme  be  devised  for  checking  the  growth  of 


parley's  farewell.  181 

these  several  races,  so  that  they  shall  not  people 
the  earth  beyond  its  power  of  furnishing  subsist- 
ence. To  provide  this  check,  one  animal  is 
made  to  prey  upon  another,  and  thus  a  suitable 
balance  of  nature  is  secured. 

And  as  a  striking  proof  of  the  wisdom  with 
which  this  balance  has  been  adjusted,  we  may 
remark,  that  while  a  butterfly  produces  600 
eggs  in  a  season,  the  elephant  has  but  a  single 
calf;  birds  of  prey  seldom  produce  more  than 
two  eggs  a  year,  while  the  sparrow,  the  duck, 
and  other  harmless  birds,  produce  from  five  to 
twelve.  In  rivers,  we  find  a  thousand  minnows 
for  one  pike  ;  in  the  sea,  a  million  of  herrings 
for  a  single  shark.  These  facts  show  that 
while  provision  is  made  for  the  peopling  of  the 
whole  earth,  care  is  taken  to  keep  the  strong 
animals  from  extirpating  the  weaker  ones,  by  a 
slower  principle  of  multiplication  in  the  former. 
Thus  the  weakness  of  certain  kinds  is  compen- 
sated by  their  fruitfulness,  and  the  power  of 
others  is  limited  by  their  slow  increase;  so  a 
due  proportion  is  sustained  between  them. 

Now,  in  this  great  system  we  can  see  a  wise 
and  beneficent  plan  ;  all  nature  is  filled  with 
happy  beings  ;   and  as  one  race  must  give  way 


182  NATURAL    RELIGION. 

to  another,  one  race  is  made  to  sustain  another. 
If  the  animals  which  become  the  prey  of  others 
suffer  from  fear,  or  in  the  pangs  of  a  violent 
death,  we  must  consider  that  these  are  tran- 
sient and  trifling,  compared  to  the  amount  of 
enjoyment  which  these  creatures  derive  from 
existence. 

James-.  Your  idea  then  is,  that  even  this 
system  of  destroying  one  another,  which  we  see 
among  animals,  is,  after  all,  a  scheme  for  in- 
creasing the  actual  amount  of  happiness  in  the 
world? 

Parley.  Yes — and  I  suppose  this  to  be 
proved  by  considering  that  this  system  prevents 
the  world  from  being  so  overstocked  with  in- 
habitants that  all  would  be  miserable  from  an 
inadequate  supply  of  food. 

But  even  supposing  we  cannot  fully  compre- 
hend this  part  of  the  providence  of  nature,  and 
cannot  see  how  it  directly  promotes  the  happi- 
ness of  God's  creatures,  still,  as  we  observe 
incontestable  proofs  of  his  benevolence  in  the 
great  system  of  the  universe,  we  are  bound  to 
conclude  that  even  in  this  respect,  he  is  also 
beneficent. 


parley's   farewell.  183 

Chapter    XXXVIII. 

Review  of  the  preceding  chapters. 

James.  Well,  Mr.  Parley,  I  am  greatly 
obliged  to  you  for  the  kind  manner  in  which 
you  have  attempted  to  instruct  Jane  and  my- 
self, and  I  shall  try  to  remember  all  you  have 
told  us. 

Jane.  And  I  am  very  much  obliged  too, 
Mr.  Parley;  but  I  wish  you  would  just  repeat 
what  you  have  said,  in  a  few  words,  to  refresh 
our  minds  and  make  us  recollect  all  you  have 
said. 

Parley.  I  will  do  it  with  pleasure.  In  the 
first  place,  I  directed  your  attention  to  the 
plants,  and  showed  that  in  these  there  were 
marks  of  contrivance  and  design ;  I  also  showed 
you,  that  in  the  various  animal  races  there 
were  marks  of  design.  I  showed  that  in  all 
these,  there  was  a  display  of  power  and  inge- 
nuity infinitely  beyond  man,  or  any  other  earth- 
ly creature.  In  this  way,  I  proved  that  some 
Superior  Being  must  exist,  else  these  wonder- 
fully ingenious  contrivances  could  not  exist. 

Having  thus  proved  the  existence  of  a  Supe- 


184  NATURAL    RELIGION. 

rior  Being,  I  attempted  to  prove  tnat  he  was 
also  wise  and  powerful,  from  considering  the 
vastness,  variety,  and  perfection  of  his  works  ; 
from  considering  that  his  creative  skill  and  his 
sustaining  power  embraced  all  existences,  from 
the  insect  to  the  solar  system — nay,  to  the 
fixed  stars.  I  then  attempted  to  prove  the 
unity  of  God  from  the  harmony  of  his  works — 
and  his  beneficence,  from  the  happiness  which 
seems  to  be  the  end  for  which  they  are  created. 
Who  that  reflects  upon  the  birds  that  are 
made  to  cleave  the  air,  and  the  fishes  that  swim 
the  wave,  can  doubt  the  existence  of  a  great  De- 
signer ?  Who  that  inspects  the  mechanism  of 
nature,  from  the  gnat  that  dances  in  the  sun- 
shine, to  the  planets  balanced  in  the  heavens, 
can  doubt  His  skill  or  His  power  ?  Who  that 
sees  the  harmony  of  the  universe  can  doubt  his 
unity?  Who  that  looks  on  the  beauty  of 
flowers  and  enjoys  their  perfume ;  who  that 
feels  the  loveliness  of  nature's  landscapes  ;  who 
that  listens  to  music  ;  who  that  looks  on 
the  feathered  tribes  ;  who  that  sees  the  enjoy- 
ment of  living  creation  ;  who  that  feels  the 
delight  of  flying  on  fancy's  wing  ;  who  that 
tastes  the    bliss    of  love    and    friendship,  can 


parley's  farewell.  185 

doubt  the  goodness  of  the  Author  of  all  these 
sources  of  happiness? 

And  now,  my  young  friends,  I  have  been 
speaking  to  you  of  what  is  called  Natural  Re- 
ligion ;  by  which  is  meant  the  religion  taught 
by  a  study  of  the  works  of  nature.  Thus  we 
see,  that  without  looking  into  the  Bible  or  any 
other  book,  and  only  regarding  this  earth  and 
the  creatures  it  contains,  there  is  clear  and 
conclusive  proof  that  a  wise,  powerful  and  good 
God,  has  made  all  things  and  upholds  all  things 
and  governs  all  things. 

If  you  will  come  and  see  me  again,  I  will 
tell  you  about  what  is  called  Revealed  Re- 
ligion.    Farewell  for  the  present. 


185 
PART  II. 

REVEALED    RELIGION 


Chapter    I. 


The  works  of  Creation  adapted  to  fulfil  the  design  of  their  Creator.  Man 
is  an  immortal  being]  a  moral  being.  To  qualify  man  to  fulfil  his  duty 
as  such,  a  full  revelation  of  God's  will  as  to  man's  duty  and  dtstiny,  seems 
to  be  required.     Has  such  a  revelation  been  furnished  ? 

It  was  not  long  after  the  promise  given  to 
my  intelligent  young  friends,  James  and  Jane, 
to  follow  up  my  remarks  upon  Natural  Reli- 
gion with  some  observations  upon  Revealed 
Religion,  that  they  came  to  claim  its  fulfilment; 
and  thereupon  I  proceeded  pretty  nearly  in  the 
following  manner. 

By  investigating  the  works  of  nature,  we  find 
that  every  thing  seems  adapted  to  fulfil  the  de- 
sign of  the  Creator.  The  bird  is  made  to  fly 
through  the  air,  and  accordingly  it  has  wings, 
admirably  contrived  for  the  purpose.  The  fish 
is  made  to  live  in  the  water,  and  so  it  has  fins, 


parley's  farewell.  187 

and  all  the  other  contrivances  suited  to  its  des- 
tination. 

We  perceive  the  same  adaptation  and  pro- 
vision throughout  the  whole  range  of  nature  ; 
and  how  is  it  with  man?  He  is  a  being  of  a 
higher  order,  and  is  of  course  made  for  a  higher 
destiny.  He  has  a  mind,  which  is  a  thinking 
power.  Man  not  only  eats,  drinks,  sleeps,  and 
feels,  as  animals  do,  but  he  puts  many  ideas  to- 
gether, and  reasons  upon  them,  as  animals  do 
not. 

This  reasoning  part  of  man  is  evidently  the 
principal  part  of  his  nature,  for  the  body  is  but 
little  more  than  the  instrument  of  the  mind. 
Man,  then,  is  an  intellectual  being,  as  the  bird 
is  a  flying  one,  or  the  fish  a  swimming  one  ; 
and  as  we  see  that  these  are  supplied  with  every 
thing  necessary  to  the  ends  they  are  designed 
to  fulfil,  we  may  reasonably  suppose,  from  anal- 
ogy, that  man,  too,  is  provided  with  all  that  is 
needed  to  enable  him  to  fulfil  his  destiny  as  an 
intellectual  being. 

Now,  one  of  the  chief  traits  in  man  is  a 
desire  of  happiness.  This  seems  to  lie  at  the 
very  foundation  of  his  character.  He  always 
acts  upon  it.     He  never  for  a  moment  forgets 


188  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

it.  It  is  as  much  fixed  in  his  nature,  as  attrac- 
tion or  gravitation  in  matter. 

The  desire  of  happiness  reaches  to  immor- 
tality. It  is  one  of  the  great  distinctions  be- 
tween man  and  animals,  that  the  former  looks 
forward  to  futurity  ;  the  latter,  never.  Antici- 
pation is  one  of  the  leading  characteristics  of 
man,  but  it  dwells  not  in  animals  :  it  is  a  faculty 
that  belongs  alone  to  mind.  And  man,  of  course, 
not  only  wishes  for  happiness,  but  for  happi- 
ness forever.  The  idea  that  his  soul  shall  be 
annihilated — shall  die,  and  cease  to  think  and 
feel,  is  full  of  horror. 

And  man  not  only  wishes  to  continue  to 
exist,  and  to  think,  to  act,  but  while  he  knows 
that  the  body  will  die,  he  has  a  presentiment, 
almost  amounting  to  assurance,  that  his  soul 
will  live.  He  seems  to  feel  within,  the  wing 
of  a  spirit  that  will  fly  to  another  world,  when 
his  limbs  shall  sink  into  the  grave. 

Now  if  you  approach  a  young  bird  in  his 
nest  upon  a  tree,  when  he  is  nearly  ready  to 
fly,  he  will  leap  from  the  nest,  spread  his 
wings,  and  throw  himself  upon  the  air ;  and 
though  he  never  tried  his  wings  before,  he  will 
fly  with  considerable  success.     It   is  instinct 


parley's   farewell.  189 

that  tells  this  hird  he  was  made  to  fly,  and  as- 
sures him  that  he  has  a  wing  to  fulfil  his  des- 
tiny ;  and  if  it  be  not  instinct,  it  cannot  be  an 
inferior  principle  that  tells  man  he  has  an  im- 
mortal soul.  It  is,  in  point  of  fact,  an  almost 
universal  belief,  among  all  nations,  that  the 
spirit  of  man  will  still  live,  when  the  body  is 
dead. 

Is  man  then  made  with  a  desire  for  immor- 
tality— a  confidence  in  a  future  state — to  be 
disappointed?  Has  God  made  man  a  thinking 
being — one  that  desires  happiness  and  con- 
tinued existence  from  the  very  necessity  of 
his  nature,  and  made  him  so  that  he  expects 
such  existence,  only  that  he  may  lie  down 
and  die  with  the  brutes  that  perish?  If  God 
has  done  this,  then  he  has  not  acted  in  that 
good  faith  toward  man,  which  he  has  shown 
to  his  other  creatures.  For  having  made  the 
bird  to  soar  aloft  in  the  sky,  God  furnished  it 
with  the  wings  suited  to  his  design  ;  intending 
the  fish  to  occupy  the  water,  he  supplied  it  with 
paddles  fitted  for  its  element ;  having  made 
man  to  hope  for  immortality,  and  to  expect 
immortality,  if  he  destroys  his  spirit,  and  makes 
a  mockery  of  both  hope  and  expectation,  he 


190  REVEALED     RELIGION. 

has  acted  with  an  inconsistency  not  to  be 
traced  in  any  part  of  his  conduct  to  the  mere 
animal  tribes. 

It  is  true  that,  with  all  our  study,  we  cannot 
pretend  folly  to  understand  the  designs  of  the 
Creator,  even  in  the  works  of  nature  which 
come  under  our  observation.  But  there  are 
so  many  instances  in  which  we  see  contriv- 
ances answering  good  and  useful  purposes,  that 
whenever  we  remark  any  peculiarity  of  struc- 
ture, or  any  peculiar  faculty,  we  justly  infer 
that  it  is  meant  for  some  good  end,  which  it  is 
fitted  to  accomplish.  If,  then,  man's  spirit  is 
not  immortal,  to  what  good  end,  for  what  good 
and  useful  purpose,  is  this  principle  of  his  na- 
ture, running  through  all  races  of  every  age, 
and  leading  him  to  feel  assured  of  surviving 
the  grave  of  the  body?  If  man  is  to  perish  in 
the  grave,  to  what  end  has  nature  inculcated 
this  universal  falsehood  upon  man?  Can  we 
doubt  that  this  general  belief  in  a  future  state, 
corresponds  to  the  truth  ;  and  that  it  is  de- 
signed to  elevate  the  mind,  to  make  it  triumph 
over  the  body,  and  qualify  it  to  enter  upon  its 
destined  immortality  ? 

There  is  another  principle  in  man,  and  which 


parley's   farewell.  191 

appears  to  be  as  extensive  as  the  race.  It  is  a 
feeling  of  obligation  to  do  what  is  right.  There 
are  few  persons,  even  among  the  most  degraded 
savage  tribes,  in  whom  this  feeling  cannot  be 
traced.  If  an  individual  has  done  wrong,  there 
is  something  within  which  upbraids  him  for  it 
— something  which  seems  to  sit  in  judgment 
upon  his  conduct,  and  bring  in  a  verdict  of 
guilty. 

This  inward  monitor  is  called  conscience, 
and  it  distinguishes  man  from  the  mere  animal 
creation.  While  animals  are  only  governed  by 
their  interests,  by  their  desires  and  appetites, 
man  is  made  capable  of  acting  from  a  sense  of 
duty,  and  from  a  regard  to  the  good  of  his  fel- 
low-men. He  is  made  the  subject  of  moral 
government.  He  can  appreciate  truth,  kind- 
ness, charity,  justice,  candor,  patience,  benev- 
olence, and  other  virtues  ;  and  he  can  perceive 
the  deformity  of  falsehood  and  other  vices. 

Man  then  is  an  immortal  being,  and  a  moral 
being.  There  is  something  within  his  very 
nature  which  tells  him  to  expect  an  existence 
beyond  this  world.  He  is  so  constituted  as 
necessarily  to  desire  happiness,  and  a  voice 
within  assures  him  that  happiness  depends  upon 


192  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

his  conduct.  Now,  as  we  observe  that  God 
has  made  provision  suited  to  the  various  capa- 
cities of  his  other  creatures  and  the  lives  they 
are  destined  to  lead,  might  we  not  expect  that 
he  would  give  to  man  some  revelation  of  his  will, 
suited  to  man's  character  as  an  immortal  and 
moral  being — something  beyond  the  mere  light 
of  nature,  to  give  assurance  to  his  hopes  of  im- 
mortality, to  make  plain  the  path  of  life  ;  to 
unfold  the  character  of  God,  and  point  out  the 
duty  and  destiny  of  man? 

I  have  before  said  that  the  young  bird  feels 
that  he  is  destined  to  fly,  and  that  before  he  has 
ever  tried  to  fly,  he  throws  himself  upon  the 
air,  and  finds  that  he  has  a  wing  to  support 
himself  with.  Instinct  tells  him  that  he  is 
made  to  fly,  and  the  fact  conforms  to  the  teach- 
ing of  instinct.  The  young  duck  that  has 
never  tried  the  water  rushes  into  it  without 
fear,  for  instinct  tells  him  that  he  is  made  to 
swim,  and  accordingly  he  finds  that  he  floats 
on  the  surface,  and  that  he  is  provided  with 
paddles  to  push  himself  along.  Here,  again, 
instinct  is  the  voice  of  truth.  The  philosopher 
Galen  once  took  a  young  kid,  and  before  it 
had  tasted  any  food   brought  it  into  a  room 


parley's   farewell.  193 

where  there  were  many  vessels,  some  filled  with 
milk,  some  with  water,  some  with  various  other 
liquors,  and  some  with  grain  and  fruit.  After 
a  while  the  kid  had  strength  enough  to  get  up- 
on its  feet ;  and  it  was  with  sentiments  of  strong 
admiration  that  the  spectators  saw  it  approach 
the  liquors,  grain  and  fruit  placed  around  the 
room,  and  having  smelt  all  of  them,  at  last  be- 
gin to  sup  the  milk  !  Here  instinct  told  the 
kid  that  he  was  made  to  eat  milk  ;  that  milk 
was  his  proper  food  ;  and  instinct  did  not  lie. 
Instinct  bids  the  migratory  birds  set  forth 
upon  long  voyages  in  the  air,  often  stretching 
across  portions  of  the  sea,  assuring  them  that, 
without  chart  or  compass,  they  shall  go  in  safety 
and  find  a  favored  land  ;  and  instinct  tells  them 
the  truth.  Such  is  the  wonderful  revelation  of 
God  to  birds. 

Some  principle  similar  to  this  teaches  man 
that  he  is  immortal,  and  the  subject  of  moral 
government,  and  may  we  not  feel  sure  that  the 
fact  conforms  to  this  instinct  ?  The  human 
race,  from  the  earliest  ages  to  the  present  day, 
have  been  impressed  with  a  belief  in  the  im- 
mortality and  responsibility  of  man.  If  this 
impression  is  false,  then,  as  before  remarked, 
13 


194  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

God  has  made  man  with  an  inward  teacher  that 
whispers  falsehood  to  him.  He  has  made  the 
whole  race  and  implanted  in  them  a  false  in- 
stinct. He  has  placed  within  them  a  principle 
which  does  not  conform  to  truth  and  fact.  He 
has  therefore  dealt  with  man  as  he  has  not 
dealt  with  any  other  of  his  works  ;  for  we  can- 
not find,  throughout  the  whole  range  of  crea- 
tion, another  instance  in  which  universal  instinct 
teaches  universal  falsehood.  We  may  conclude, 
therefore,  that  this  general  impression  of  man- 
kind as  to  the  immortality  and  responsibility  of 
the  human  race,  is  founded  upon  immutable 
truth  ;  for  has  God  been  true  to  the  birds,  and 
all  his  other  creatures,  and  false  to  man? 
Certainly  not. 

Having  then  made  man  an  immortal  and 
moral  being,  might  we  not  expect  that  he 
would  support  his  hopes  and  expectations,  as 
such,  by  clear  and  distinct  revelation?  With- 
out such  a  provision,  would  it  not  seem  that 
something  was  wanting ;  that  there  was  an  in- 
completeness in  the  provisions  of  Providence 
for  man,  at  variance  with  that  general  care 
by  which  the  Creator  has  provided  for  the 
wants  of  all  other  living  things?     As  the  ani- 


parley's  farewell.  195 

mals  without  instinct  would  need  something  to 
enable  them  to  fulfil  their  destiny,  so,  without 
a  revelation,  would  not  man  be  deficient  in 
something  essential  to  an  immortal  and  moral 
being? 

God,  then,  has  granted  a  revelation  to  in- 
sects, to  birds,  to  fishes,  to  quadrupeds.  And 
this  revelation  is  often  most  wonderful,  for  it 
gives  the  uninstructed  insect  the  use  of  know- 
ledge which  human  reason  finds  out  with  labor 
and  difficulty  ;  it  bestows,  at  once,  upon  the 
feathered  voyagers  the  geographical  results  of 
the  mariner's  compass  and  the  discoveries  of 
Columbus  !  All  the  knowledge  they  ask  for, 
is  given  to  the  unreasoning  brutes.  And  man, 
who  looks  up  to  Heaven  with  a  thousand  anx- 
ious inquiries — is  there  no  answer  to  these? 
Is  man  the  only  creature  that  walks  the  earth 
in  mystery?  Is  man  the  only  living  thing  that 
asks  for  revelation,  and  cannot  find  an  ear  to 
answer  his  request?  Surely  man  has  reason 
to  expect  a  revelation,  which  may  dispel  the 
fears,  and  doubts,  and  anxieties,  to  which  na- 
ture, alone,  would  leave  him. 

From  this  view  of  the  subject,  it  would  seem 
highly  probable,  beforehand,  that  God  would 


196  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

give  some  revelation  of  his  will  to  man,  other 
than  the  mere  light  of  nature.  The  question 
which  I  now  propose  to  discuss,  is,  whether  he 
has  furnished  such  a  revelation. 


Chapter  II. 


The  several  works  which  claim  to  be  revelations  from  God.  Mahomet  and 
the  Koran.  The  sacred  books  of  the  Hindoos.  Various  heathen  creeds. 
The  Bible. 

We  enter,  then,  upon  the  inquiry  whether 
God  has  given  us  a  revelation  of  his  will,  other 
than  that  which  nature  affords,  with  a  strong 
probability  on  the  affirmative  side  of  the  ques- 
tion. 

In  looking  over  the  world,  we  shall  find  sev- 
eral works  claiming  to  be  revelations  from 
God.  One  of  them  is  the  Koran  or  Alcoran, 
which  was  written  by  Mahomet,  an  Arabian, 
about  1200  years  ago.  This  person  pretended 
to  be  a  prophet,  and  to  have  communication 
with  Heaven.  The  Koran  consists  of  what  he 
pretended  to  have  been  instructed  by  God  to 
write. 

The  Arabians  were  an  ignorant  and  super- 


parley's   farewell.  197 

stitious  people,  and  Mahomet  easily  persuaded 
them  that  he  was,  in  fact,  a  prophet — that  he 
had  intercourse  with  Heaven — that  he  was  a 
man  of  exalted  and  sacred  character,  and  that 
his  pretended  revelations  were  true. 

Mahomet  soon  found  himself  surrounded 
with  followers,  and  he  determined  to  use  the 
power  thus  placed  in  his  hands  for  his  own 
selfish  purposes.  Accordingly,  he  raised  an 
army  from  among  his  disciples,  and  made  war 
upon  those  who  denied  his  pretensions.  Being 
a  bold  and  skilful  man,  he  soon  made  his  name 
feared  by  all  around  him ;  and  thus  the  sword 
compelled  men  to  submit  to  the  lofty  claims  of 
the  pretended  prophet. 

In  this  way  he  laid  the  foundation  of  a  reli- 
gious faith,  and  in  order  to  secure  its  observ- 
ance and  extension,  he  established  an  empire, 
in  all  the  dominions  of  which,  submission  to 
this  faith  was  required.  When  he  died,  his 
successors  continued  to  propagate  his  faith, 
and  it  thus  became  extended  over  a  considera- 
ble part  of  Asia.  From  that  day  to  this,  it 
has  been  the  creed  of  a  considerable  portion 
of  mankind.  At  the  present  day,  it  prevails 
among  the  Turks  of  Europe,  and  among  many 
of  the  nations  of  Asia  and  Africa. 


198  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

It  is  not  a  difficult  question  for  us  to  decide 
whether  the  Koran  is  a  true  revelation  from 
God  or  not.  There  are  several  tests  which 
we  may  apply  to  such  a  work,  in  order  to  de- 
termine its  truth,  and  all  which,  we  shall  see, 
concur  in  condemning  Mahomet  as  a  deceiver, 
and  his  work  as  an  imposition. 

In  the  first  place,  Mahomet  pretended  to 
work  miracles  in  order  to  prove  that  God  had 
given  him  power  over  the  laws  of  nature,  so  that 
he  might  command  the  respect  and  confidence 
of  mankind.  But,  on  investigation,  it  appears 
that  these  miracles  were  mere  tricks  and  de- 
ceptions. 

In  the  next  place,  Mahomet  was  a  man  of 
bad  character,  and  he  used  the  power  he  ac- 
quired for  selfish  purposes  ;  and  finally,  the 
Koran  itself  is  filled  with  absurdities.  Thus 
the  book  and  its  author  are  condemned  for  the 
want  of  evidence  to  support  their  pretensions, 
from  the  selfish  origin  of  the  former,  from  the 
inconsistency  of  the  character  of  Mahomet  with 
his  pretensions,  and  from  the  monstrous  doc- 
trines contained  in  his  revelation. 

Among  the  inhabitants  of  Hindostan,  there 
are  several  books  which  are  called  sacred,  and 


parley's  farewell.  199 

which,  for  many  ages,  have  been  regarded  by 
the  people  as  divine  revelations.  But  these  too 
are  unsupported  by  any  proof  from  history  that 
they  came  from  God  ;  and  though  they  abound 
in  sublime  truths,  yet  they  are  marred  with 
passages  of  the  grossest  folly  and  absurdity. 

There  are  also  in  China,  in  Japan,  in  Thi- 
bet, and  other  countries,  pretended  revelations, 
either  written  and  preserved  in  books,  or  hand- 
ed down  by  tradition,  and  propagated  by  the 
priests.  But  none  of  these  can  bear  the  test 
of  rational  examination — they  are  all  the  off- 
spring of  human  invention,  illuminated  by  pas- 
sages borrowed  from  the  light  of  nature,  or  the 
early  revelations  of  God  to  man,  or  from  our 
own  sacred  scriptures. 

There  is  but  one  work  which  can  for  a  mo- 
ment claim  the  confidence  of  an  enlightened 
mind  as  a  divine  revelation,  and  this  is  the 
book  which  we  call  the  Bible.  If  this  does 
not  contain  a  revelation  of  God's  will,  then 
there  is  none  other  than  the  light  which  nature 
affords.  If  this  is  not  true,  then  man  is  left  by 
his  Maker  without  a  lamp  to  guide  him  in  his 
way  through  the  labyrinths  of  life,  uncertain 
of  what  he  is,  and  doubtful  of  his  duty  and  his 
destiny. 


200  REVEALED    RELIGION. 


Chapter   III. 

History  of  the  Bible. 

The  Bible  consists  of  various  books,  written 
by  different  persons  at  different  times.  Some  of 
these  record  historical  events ;  some  repeat  the 
words  of  prophets  ;  some  express  the  feelings  of 
pious  men  ;  some  relate  chiefly,  to  Christ  and  his 
apostles  ;   others  inculcate  points  of  doctrine. 

The  Bible  consists  of  two  portions,  called  the 
Old  and  New  Testament.  The  former  were 
the  sacred  books  of  the  Jews,  and  derived  the 
name  of  testament  from  being  understood  to  set 
forth  a  covenant  between  God  and  his  chosen 
people,  the  Jews.  The  New  Testament  is  so 
called  from  its  being  understood  to  set  forth  a 
new  covenant  between  God  and  all  mankind, 
which  covenant,  however,  is  regarded  as  but  a 
completion  of  that  made  with  the  Jews. 

The  five  first  books  of  the  Old  Testament 
are  said  to  have  been  written  by  Moses,  about 
3280  years  ago.  These  consist  of  Genesis, 
Exodus,  Leviticus,  Numbers,  and  Deuteron- 
omy. They  contain  the  history  of  the  creation 
of  the  world,  of  the  origin  of  the  human  race, 


parley's  farewell.  201 

of  their  increase,  their  great  wickedness,  and 
their  destruction  by  the  Deluge,  with  the  ex- 
ception of  Noah  and  his  family.  They  also 
contain  the  history  of  Abraham,  of  Isaac  and 
Jacob,  of  the  bondage  of  the  Jews  in  Egypt, 
of  their  deliverance,  and  their  wanderings  in  the 
wilderness. 

The  other  books  of  the  Old  Testament  were 
written  by  various  authors  ;  some  of  them  are 
historical  ;  some  prophetic ;  and  some  poet- 
ical. These  books  appear  to  have  been  held 
in  the  highest  reverence  by  the  Jews  from  very 
early  times.  The  books  of  Moses  were  depos- 
ited, according  to  the  Bible,  after  his  death,  in 
the  tabernacle,  near  the  ark  ;  the  other  sacred 
writings,  it  is  said,  were  successively  deposited 
in  the  same  place,  as  they  were  written.  Af- 
ter the  building  of  the  temple,  they  were  re- 
moved by  Solomon  to  that  edifice.  On  the 
capture  of  Jerusalem  by  Nebuchadnezzar,  in 
the  year  606  B.  C,  the  original  writings  pro- 
bably perished,  but  numerous  copies  were 
preserved. 

The  Jews  returned  from  their  captivity  536 
B.  C,  and  having  rebuilt  their  temple  and  re- 
stored their  religion,  it  is  said  that  the  prophet 


202  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

Ezra,  in  connection  with  other  learned  men, 
collected  all  the  copies  of  the  sacred  writings 
that  could  he  found,  and  made  out  a  new 
and  correct  edition,  to  which  he  is  supposed 
to  have  made  certain  additions,  as  for  instance 
the  last  chapter  of  Deuteronomy,  which  re- 
cords the  death  of  Moses.  This  revised  and 
corrected  copy,  with  the  books  of  Ezra, 
Malachi,  and  Nehemiah,  which  were  added 
by  Simon  the  Just,  constituted  the  complete 
Jewish  scriptures  of  the  Old  Testament,  and 
are  regarded  as  sacred  by  the  Jews  to  the 
present  day.  These  were  all  first  written  in 
the  Hebrew  language. 

The  New  Testament  also  consists  of  several 
books  written  by  different  authors.  The  four 
Gospels  of  Matthew,  Mark,  Luke  and  John, 
record  the  life  and  death  of  Jesus  Christ,  and 
were  severally  written  by  the  disciples  whose 
names  they  bear.  The  Acts  were  written  by 
Luke. 

The  Jews  reject  the  New  Testament,  all  the 
books  of  which  were  originally  written  in 
Greek  ;  but  the  present  acknowledged  books 
were  received  by  the  early  Christians,  and 
copies  of  them  were  soon  made  in  many  Ian- 


parley's  farewell.  203 

guages.  In  modern  times,  the  greatest  pains 
have  been  taken  to  render  the  editions  of  the 
New  and  Old  Testament  correct ;  and  in  order 
to  accomplish  this,  hundreds  of  copies  in  differ- 
ent languages  have  been  compared,  line  by  line 
and  letter  by  letter. 

The  several  books  of  the  Bible  were  ori- 
ginally written  continuously,  without  division 
and  without  punctuation.  They  were  formed 
into  chapters  and  verses  from  the  13th  to  the 
1 5th  centuries.  The  punctuation  is  also  of 
modern  date. 

The  English  translation  of  the  Bible  in  com- 
mon use  was  made  by  the  command  of  King 
James  I.,  of  England,  and  forty-seven  learned 
persons  were  charged  with  the  task.  It  was 
most  elaborately  and  carefully  prepared,  and 
was  first  printed  in  1611.  Various  attempts 
have  been  made  to  improve  this  English  version 
of  the  sacred  writings,  but  none  has  met  with 
approbation  at  the  hands  of  the  Christian  pub- 
lic. 


204}  REVEALED    RELIGION, 


Chapter    IV. 

The  various  kinds  of  proof  which  may  be  brought  to  show  the  authenticity 
of  the  Scriptures. 

Such  is  a  brief  history  of  the  Bible,  and  the 
question  we  are  to  consider  is,  whether  that 
book  is  true.  Most  of  the  writers,  both  in  the 
Old  and  New  Testament,  claim  to  have  been 
inspired  by  God,  and  Christians  hold  that  these 
books  contain  a  genuine  Revelation  of  God's 
will  to  man.     Are  these  claims  well  founded? 

There  are  several  kinds  of  proof  which  may 
be  brought  to  bear  upon  the  question  of  the 
truth  of  the  Bible.  The  first  is  historical  proof, 
by  which  we  may  show  that  these  books  are  of 
great  antiquity  ;  that  they  were  actually  written 
by  the  persons  who  profess  to  have  written  them  ; 
that  they  have  been  held  in  reverence  and  re- 
garded as  true  for  ages,  by  those  best  quali- 
fied to  judge  of  their  authenticity,  and  that 
they  truly  record  real  events. 

Another  kind  of  proof  is  derived  from  tracing 
a  harmony  between  the  several  parts  of  the 
representation,  as  well  as  an  agreement  with 
known    and    established    historical   dates    and 


parley's   farewell.  205 

events  ;  a  suitableness  of  style,  and  the  devel- 
opment of  great  and  sublime  conceptions. 

Another  kind  of  proof  is  that  derived  from 
miracles,  and  another,  that  deduced  from  pro- 
phecy, by  which  it  may  be  shown  that  some  of 
the  scripture  characters  have  foretold  events 
which  have  actually  come  to  pass.  Another 
kind  is  negative  proof,  which  is  the  want  of 
evidence  against  the  claims  of  the  Bible. 

Now  I  propose  to  apply  these  several  tests 
to  the  scriptures,  and  I  shall  endeavor  to  do  it 
in  such  a  manner  that  you  may  easily  under- 
stand the  force  of  my  arguments. 


Chapter  V. 


The  New  Testament.  The  accounts  set  forth  by  the  Gospels.  The  de- 
sign of  Christ's  mission  and  death  :  the  object  of  the  preaching  of  his  Apos- 
tles. The  period  of  these  events.  Political,  social,  and  religious  state  of 
society  at  this  time. 

Let  us  first  direct  our  attention  to  the  New 
Testament,  which  consists  of  28  books.  The 
first  four,  called  the  Gospels,  purport  to  have 
been  written  by  four  of  Christ's  disciples,  Mat- 
thew, Mark,  Luke  and  John :  the  Acts  of  the 


206  REVEALED     RELIGION. 

Apostles  are  supposed  to  have  been  written  by 
Luke.  The  Epistles  to  the  Romans,  Corin- 
thians, Galatians,  Ephesians,  Philippians,  Co- 
lossians,  Thessalonians,  to  Timothy,  Titus, 
Philemon,  and  to  the  Hebrews,  are  supposed  to 
have  been  written  by  Paul.  The  other  Epistles 
bear  the  names  of  their  several  reputed  authors. 
The  Book  of  Revelation  claims  to  have  been 
written  by  John,  the  author  of  the  Gospel. 

The  Gospels,  as  before  remarked,  are  chiefly 
occupied  in  detailing  the  circumstances  which 
attended  the  birth,  the  life  and  death  of  Je- 
sus Christ.  They  relate  that  he  was  born 
in  humble  circumstances,  that  he  was  without 
education,  and  was  chiefly  occupied  as  a  car- 
penter, till  about  thirty  years  of  age.  He  then 
entered  upon  his  ministry,  and  began  to  teach 
doctrines  entirely  new  to  the  people  and  to  the 
world.  His  life  was  blameless,  and  his  man- 
ners were  marked  with  a  humility  and  meek- 
ness never  known  before.  He  claimed  to  be 
sent  by  divine  authority  to  communicate  impor- 
tant truths  to  mankind,  and  to  prove  the  justice 
of  these  pretensions,  he  wrought  several  mira- 
cles which  were  witnessed  by  thousands.  He 
chose  twelve  persons  from  humble  life  to  be  his 


parley's   farewell.  207 

followers,  and  to  them  he  taught  his  religion. 
He  spent  a  great  part  of  his  time  in  Jerusalem, 
but  made  occasional  visits  to  neighboring  vil- 
lages, and  other  places,  especially  his  native 
province  of  Galilee. 

Wherever  he  went,  he  healed  the  sick,  com- 
forted the  distressed,  preached  his  doctrines, 
and  wrought  miracles  to  give  efficacy  to  his 
creed.  At  length,  agreeably  to  his  own  predic- 
tion, he  was  seized  by  the  public  authorities  at 
Jerusalem,  and  patiently  submitting,  was  abus- 
ed, reviled,  and  finally  nailed  to  a  cross,  where 
he  died  in  extreme  agony.  He  was  put  into  a 
stone  coffin,  where  his  lifeless  body  lay  for  three 
days,  when  he  arose  from  the  dead.  For  forty 
days  he  now  showed  himself  to  his  apostles,  and 
spoke  fully  to  them  of  the  "  things  pertaining 
to  the  kingdom  of  God." 

"  He  commanded  them  that  they  should  not 
depart  from  Jerusalem,  but  wait  for  the  prom- 
ise of  the  Father,  which,  saith  he,  ye  have 
heard  of  me. 

"  For  John  truly  baptized  with  water  ;  but 
ye  shall  be  baptized  with  the  Holy  Ghost  not 
many  days  hence. 

"  When  they  therefore  were  come  together, 


208  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

they  asked  of  him,  saying,  Lord,  wilt  thou  at 
this  time  restore  again  the  kingdom  to  Israel? 

"  And  he  said  unto  them,  It  is  not  for  you 
to  know  the  times  or  the  seasons  which  the 
Father  hath  put  in  his  own  power. 

4 'But  ye  shall  receive  power  after  that  the 
Holy  Ghost  is  come  upon  you,  and  ye  shall  he 
witnesses  unto  me,  both  in  Jerusalem,  and  in  all 
Judea,  and  in  Samaria,  and  unto  the  uttermost 
part  of  the  earth. 

"  And  when  he  had  spoken  these  things, 
while  they  beheld,  he  was  taken  up  ;  and  a 
cloud  received  him  out  of  their  sight. 

"  And  while  they  looked  steadfastly  toward 
heaven  as  he  went  up,  behold,  two  men  stood 
by  them  in  white  apparel ; 

"  Which  also  said,  Ye  men  of  Galilee,  why 
stand  ye  gazing  up  into  heaven?  This  same 
Jesus,  which  is  taken  up  from  you  into  heaven, 
shall  so  come  in  like  manner  as  ye  have  seen 
him  go  into  heaven. 

tC  Then  returned  they  unto  Jerusalem,  from 
the  mount  called  Olivet,  which  is  from  Jerusa- 
lem a  Sabbath-day's  journey. " 

Such  is  the  memoir  of  Christ,  handed  down 
to  us  in  the  Gospels.     The  great  end  and  de- 


parley's  farewell.  209 

sign  of  his  preaching  is  there  represented  to  be 
to  announce  a  new,  peculiar,  and  most  impor- 
tant revelation  from  God  ;  his  miracles  were 
intended  to  sanction  the  faith  he  thus  taught ; 
his  death  was  designed,  in  part,  as  a  seal  to  the 
truth  and  divinity  of  his  mission.  His  apostles 
were  sent  forth  to  inculcate  the  "good  news," 
the  "  glad  tidings,"  to  all  mankind,  which  Christ 
had  published  to  the  people  of  Judea.  They 
were,  in  short,  to  propagate  a  new  religion, 
which  in  its  very  nature  held  all  other  religions 
to  be  false,  wicked  and  delusive. 

The  period  of  these  events,  was  about  1800 
years  ago.  At  that  time  the  whole  of  Judea 
was  reduced  to  a  Roman  province.  Rome  had 
then  extended  her  sway  over  nearly  the  whole 
civilized  world.  Her  authority  was  generally 
well  settled,  and  around  the  entire  borders  of 
the  Mediterranean  sea,  easy  and  frequent  com- 
munication was  had  between  the  several  coun- 
tries and  the  city  of  Rome,  where  Tiberius 
Cesar,  then  the  emperor,  resided. 

The  art  of  printing  was  then  unknown,  and 
education  was  not  diffused  among  the  people. 
Writing  on  parchment  was,  however,  a  com- 
mon practice,  and  many  books  were  written. 
14 


210  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

There  were  many  learned  men  at  Rome,  and 
the  military  and  civil  officers  in  the  different 
provinces  were  mostly  well  educated,  and  made 
frequent  written  communications  to  the  gov- 
ernment at  the  capital.  It  was  by  no  means  a 
dark  age,  as  it  respected  the  means  of  reading 
and  disseminating  facts  ;  but  was,  on  the  con- 
trary, near  the  precise  period  when  Roman 
literature  had  reached  its  highest  pitch  of 
glory. 

The  people  of  Rome  had  early  adopted  the 
fanciful  mythology  of  the  Greeks,  with  its 
numberless  deities  ;  and  wherever  Rome  had 
carried  her  conquests,  she  had  transplanted  this 
religion,  The  Jews  still  kept  their  sacred 
books,  and  maintained  the  forms  of  their  pe- 
culiar religion  ;  but  the  spirit  of  the  patriarchs 
and  the  prophets,  which  had  dwelt  with  the 
people  in  former  ages,  had  now  departed. 
Many  of  the  Jews  were  in  fact  idolaters,  and 
most  of  those  who  held  to  the  faith  of  their  fa- 
thers, had  adopted  the  selfish  and  corrupt  prac- 
tical philosophy  of  the  heathen  around  them. 

The  fashionable  religion — the  religion  of  the 
government — of  the  office-holders — of  the  rich, 
the  learned,  the  fortunate  and  the  powerful,  and 


parley's  farewell.  211 

indeed  of  nearly  the  whole  mass  of  the  people 
throughout  the  Roman  empire,  then  including 
nearly  all  Europe,  a  large  part  of  Africa,  and 
the  greater  portion  of  Asia — was  the  religion 
of  many  gods,  and  involved  the  worship  of 
a  great  number  of  deities.  To  these,  beauti- 
ful images  and  superb  temples  were  every 
where  erected.  Their  peculiar  rites  and  cere- 
monies were  attended  by  multitudes  of  priests, 
and  set  forth  with  all  the  pomp  and  circum- 
stance calculated  to  lead  captive  the  imagina- 
tion of  a  superstitious  age.  The  priests,  too, 
were  generally  the  agents  and  tools  of  the  gov- 
ernment, and  as  they  sustained  the  ruling  pow- 
ers by  all  the  influence  they  acquired  over  the 
minds  of  their  followers,  so  the  government  in 
return  felt  interested  in  giving  their  support  to 
the  idolatries  of  the  priests. 

Such  was  the  political  condition  of  the  world 
— such  the  state  of  society — such  the  fortified 
position  of  paganism,  at  the  time  when  it  is 
said  that  Jesus  Christ  appeared  to  propound 
a  new  faith  to  mankind,  and  when,  dying 
himself  to  attest  its  truth,  he  rose  from  the 
dead  to  assure  his  apostles,  and  to  send  them 
forth  on  their  perilous    errand    of  converting 


212  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

a  world  from  their  loved  idolatries  to  a  pure, 
self-denying  creed.  Let  us  now  inquire  whe- 
ther the  books  that  give  an  account  of  these 
events,  are  genuine  and  true. 


Chapter    VI. 


Unbelief  of  the  Jewish  nation  in  Christ- s  mission.  Unbelief  of  the  an- 
cient heathen  nations.  Modern  infidelity.  The  Bible  to  be  tested  like  other 
books. 

My  young  friends  may  perhaps  be  shocked 
to  hear  that  there  are  persons  who  disbelieve 
the  Bible.  But  this  has  been  the  fact  from  the 
earliest  ages.  The  Jews  had  been  accustomed 
to  read  their  sacred  books,  which  constitute  the 
Old  Testament,  and  they  perceived  that  the 
prophets  spoke  of  a  Messiah,  who  was  to  ap- 
pear among  them,  and  establish  a  great  and 
mighty  kingdom.  They  understood  this  in  a 
literal  sense,  and  eagerly  expected  the  appear- 
ance of  some  conqueror,  who  should  deliver 
them  from  the  Roman  bondage,  and  raise  the 
Jewish  nation  to  its  former  pitch  of  wealth, 
power  and  dominion. 

When  Christ  appeared,  and  claimed  to  be 


parley's   farewell.  213 

the  Messiah,  the  disappointed  and  irritated 
Jews,  combining  with  the  provincial  govern- 
ment, caused  Jesus  to  be  put  to  death.  Hav- 
ing taken  this  step,  it  was  but  natural  that  the 
Jewish  nation  should  follow  up  their  murder  of 
Christ  by  the  persecution  of  his  followers,  To 
justify  these  measures,  they  would  of  course 
represent  Christ  as  an  impostor,  and  his  apos- 
tles as  either  cheats  or  fanatics. 

Such  in  fact  was  the  conduct  of  the  greater 
part  of  the  Jewish  nation,  for  though  many  be- 
lieved in  Christ  even  during  his  lifetime,  and 
thousands  followed  his  apostles,  still,  the  more 
learned  Jews,  and  particularly  those  who  were 
connected  with  the  government,  or  had  an  in- 
terest in  supporting  the  ceremonial  worship  of 
the  Jews,  rejected  the  new  faith  with  scorn  and 
indignation.  These  views  and  feelings  were 
communicated  by  the  priests  and  learned  men 
of  the  Jews  to  succeeding  generations,  and 
from  that  time  to  the  present  day,  the  Jewish 
nation  have  continued  to  deny  the  New  Tes- 
tament, and  the  divinity  of  Christ's  mission. 

The  religion  of  Christ  could  hardly  expect  a 
more  favorable  reception  from  the  heathen  na- 
tions wedded  to  idolatrous  worship,  which  had 


214  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

been  sanctioned  by  the  usage  of  ages,  which 
was  supported  by  the  whole  weight  of  the  im- 
perial government  of  Rome,  countenanced  by 
the  learned  men,  and  fortified  by  the  habits, 
prejudices  and  passions  of  the  people.  It  was 
hardly  to  be  expected  that  a  new  faith,  aiming 
at  the  entire  overthrow  of  a  religion  so  strongly 
founded,  could  fail  to  beget  active  and  bitter 
opposition. 

Such  opposition  was  indeed  excited,  and 
though  thousands  believed,  tens  of  thousands 
eagerly  engaged  in  mockery  or  persecution  of 
the  Christians.  Their  characters  were  misrep- 
resented, their  doctrines  perverted,  their  whole 
religion  treated  as  a  fable  and  a  falsehood. 
These  views  were  communicated  to  after  ages, 
and  even  in  our  own  time  we  find  persons  who 
regard  the  whole  New-Testament  history  as  an 
imposition,  and  the  Gospel  as  the  deceptive 
contrivance  of  priestcraft. 

The  truth  of  the  New  Testament  being  de- 
nied, we  are  thus  obliged  to  come  to  the  ques- 
tion of  its  authenticity  and  veracity,  as  if 
its  pages  were  divested  of  their  sacred  char- 
acter, and  to  be  tested  by  the  same  evidence 
as  other  writings. 


parley's  farewell.  215 


Chapter  VII. 

Testimony  of  Tacitus,  a  Roman  writer,  to  the  fact  that  Christ  died  for 
his  religion;  and  that  this  was  rapidly  extended  after  his  death. 

There  was  a  celebrated  Roman  historian 
named  Tacitus,  who  wrote  about  seventy  years 
after  the  death  of  Christ.  A  part  of  his  works 
are  preserved,  and  as  they  are  universally  re- 
garded as  authentic,  they  have  ever  received 
great  respect.  In  speaking  of  an  infamous 
Roman  Emperor,  named  Nero,  who  was  sus- 
pected of  having  caused  the  city  of  Rome  to  be 
set  on  fire,  this  writer  holds  the  following  lan- 
guage. 

"But  neither  these  exertions,  nor  his  lar- 
gesses to  the  people,  nor  his  offerings  to  the 
gods,  did  away  the  infamous  imputation  under 
which  Nero  lay,  of  having  ordered  the  city  to 
be  set  on  fire.  To  put  an  end,  therefore,  to 
this  report,  he  laid  the  guilt,  and  inflicted  the 
most  cruel  punishments,  upon  a  set  of  people 
who  were  holden  in  abhorrence  for  their  crimes, 
and  called  by  the  vulgar,  Christians.  The 
founder  of  that  name  was  Christ,  who  suffered 


216  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

death  in  the  reign  of  Tiberius,  under  his  pro- 
curator Pontius  Pilate. 

"  This  pernicious  superstition,  thus  checked 
for  a  while,  broke  out  again  ;  and  spread  not 
only  over  Judea,  where  the  evil  originated,  but 
through  Rome  also,  whither  every  thing  bad 
upon  the  earth  finds  its  way,  and  is  practised. 
Some,  who  confessed  their  sect,  were  seized, 
and  afterward,  by  their  information,  a  vast 
multitude  were  apprehended,  who  were  con- 
victed, not  so  much  of  the  crime  of  burning 
Home,  as  of  hatred  to  mankind.  Their  suffer- 
ings at  their  execution  were  aggravated  by 
insult  and  mockery  ;  for  some  were  disguised 
in  the  skins  of  wild  beasts,  and  worried  to  death 
by  dogs  ;  some  were  crucified ;  and  others 
were  wrapped  in  pitch  shirts,  and  set  on  fire 
when  the  day  closed,  that  they  might  serve  as 
lights  to  illuminate  the  night. 

"  Nero  lent  his  own  gardens  for  these  execu- 
tions, and  exhibited  at  the  same  time  a  mock  Cir- 
censian  entertainment ;  being  a  spectator  of  the 
whole,  in  the  dress  of  a  charioteer,  sometimes 
mingling  with  the  crowd  on  foot,  and  some- 
times viewing  the  spectacle  from  his  car.  This 
conduct  made  the  sufferers  pitied  ;   and  though 


parley's  farewell.  217 

they  were  criminals,  and  deserving  the  severest 
punishments,  yet  they  were  considered  as  sacri- 
ficed, not  so  much  out  of  a  regard  to  the  public 
good,  as  to  gratify  the  cruelty  of  one  man." 

Now  we  must  consider  that  Tacitus  views 
the  Christians  with  all  the  prejudices  of  an  idol- 
ater. His  opinions,  of  course,  upon  such  a 
topic  are  entitled  to  no  regard.  But  his  testi- 
mony to  facts  should  be  received  with  implicit 
credit,  and  these  facts  are  of  the  utmost  impor- 
tance to  our  investigation.  We  have  here  the 
evidence  of  one  who  despised  and  hated  the 
Christians,  confirming  the  most  material  facts 
in  the  Gospel  history,  viz.,  that  Christ  was  the 
founder  of  a  new  religion  ;  that  he  appeared  in 
Judea  ;  and  that  he  there  suffered  death  at  the 
very  point  of  time  recorded  in  the  New  Tes- 
tament. 

It  should  be  remembered  that  Tacitus  is 
speaking  of  events  that  occurred  only  about  34 
years  after  the  death  of  Christ.  In  this  short 
space  of  time,  the  new  religion  had  reached 
Rome,  a  distance  of  about  1500  miles,  and  had 
already  become  so  extensive  there,  as  to  attract 
the  attention  of  government ;  and  this,  too,  in 
the  face  of  the  most  cruel  persecution  that 
the  world  has  witnessed. 


218  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

Can  we  believe  that  a  religion  whicn  spread 
so  rapidly,  and  in  spite  of  such  opposition, 
with  all  the  means  at  hand  for  investigating  its 
origin,  could  have  been  founded  in  imposition? 
Taking  the  fact  that  Christ  suffered  death  for 
the  sake  of  his  religion,  and  that  within  thirty- 
four  years  this  religion  was  so  extended  as  to 
have  numerous  followers  in  a  city  1500  miles 
distant  who  suffered  torments  of  every  kind 
rather  than  renounce  their  faith,  can  we  doubt 
that  there  was  something  in  the  character  of 
Christ,  something  so  remarkable  in  his  life  and 
his  doctrines,  and  that  these  were  so  clearly 
and  unquestionably  proved,  as  to  claim  the  re- 
spect of  mankind?  Does  not  this  view  of  the 
case  forbid  the  supposition  that  Christ  was  an 
impostor?  for  how  could  men  willing  to  die  for 
what  they  believed  to  be  the  truth,  be  so  indif- 
ferent to  truth  as  to  embrace  a  falsehood  and 
become  the  dupes  of  a  deceiver?  How  indeed 
could  so  many  persons  have  been  so  grossly 
deceived,  in  an  enlightened  age,  when  the  means 
of  gaining  and  communicating  facts  were  abun- 
dant ;  and  relative  also  to  a  matter  so  palpable 
in  its  nature,  and  of  so  recent  occurrence  that 
it  must  have  taken  place  in  the  lifetime  of 
many  of  these  converts? 


PARLEY'S     FAREWELL.  219 

Now  as  no  one  pretends  to  doubt  the  facts 
stated  by  Tacitus,  viz.,  that  Christ  suffered 
death  for  the  sake  of  his  religion,  and  that 
this  spread  far  and  wide  with  astonishing  rapid- 
ity, and  that  his  followers  were  so  convinced 
of  the  truth  of  their  belief,  that  they  suffered 
every  species  of  torment,  and  the  most  horrible 
kinds  of  death,  rather  than  renounce  it  ;  can  we 
fail  to  see  that  this  establishes  beyond  a  doubt 
the  main  facts  related  in  the  Gospels,  and  lends 
the  strongest  probability  to  their  entire  truth 
and  accuracy? 

To  confirm  this  view  of  the  matter,  it  may 
be  stated,  that  several  writers  cotemporary 
with  Tacitus,  and  others  somewhat  later,  but 
still  at  a  period  near  the  death  of  Christ,  tes- 
tify to  the  great  and  rapid  extension  of  Chris- 
tianity among  the  people,  to  the  persecutions 
they  endured  from  the  government,  and  to  the 
fortitude  with  which  they  suffered  and  died  in 
attestation  of  their  sincerity. 


220  REVEALED    RELIGION. 


Chapter   VIII. 

Christ  s  religion  did  originate,  and  the  Testament  account  of  its  origin  ex- 
plains its  rapid  extension.  Moreover,  there  is  no  other  history  of  this  matter 
set  up  by  heathen  writers  ;  on  the  contrary,  so  far  as  they  go,  they  confirm 
it.  The  inference  in  favor  of  the  truth  of  the  New  Testament  is  very 
strong. 

But  there  is  still  more  conclusive  proof  of 
the  authenticity  of  the  books  of  the  New  Tes- 
tament. Christ  died,  and  his  religion  was  em- 
braced. There  is  no  dispute  about  this  ;  so 
much  is  certain.  And  another  fact  is  also  cer- 
tain, that  no  account  of  the  history  of  Christ 
and  the  foundation  of  his  religion  is  given  that 
is  not  in  perfect  harmony  with  that  furnished 
by  the  New  Testament.  "  There  is  not  a  docu- 
ment,'' says  Dr.  Paley,  "  or  scrap  of  account, 
either  contemporary  with  the  commencement 
of  Christianity,  or  extant  within  many  ages  af- 
ter that  commencement,  which  assigns  a  history 
substantially  differing  from  ours.  The  remote, 
brief,  and  incidental  notices  of  the  affair,  which 
are  found  in  heathen  writers,  so  far  as  they  do 
go,  go  along  with  us.  They  bear  testimony 
to  these  facts  : — that  the  institution  originated 
from   Jesus ;    that   the   Founder  was   put   to 


parley's  farewell.  221 

death,  as  a  malefactor,  at  Jerusalem,  by  the 
authority  of  the  Roman  governor,  Pontius  Pi- 
late ;  that  the  religion  nevertheless  spread  in 
that  city  and  throughout  Judea ;  and  that  it 
was  propagated  thence  to  distant  countries ; 
that  the  converts  were  numerous  ;  that  they 
suffered  great  hardships  and  injuries  for  their 
profession  ;  and  that  all  this  took  place  in  the 
age  of  the  world  which  our  books  have  as- 
signed. 

"  They  go  on  farther,  to  describe  the  manners 
of  Christians,  in  terms  perfectly  conformable  to 
the  accounts  extant  in  our  books  ;  that  they 
were  wont  to  assemble  on  a  certain  day  ;  that 
they  sang  hymns  to  .Christ  as  to  a  god;  that 
they  bound  themselves  by  an  oath  not  to  com- 
mit any  crime,  and  to  adhere  strictly  to  their  pro- 
mises, and  not  to  deny  money  deposited  in  their 
hands  ;  that  they  worshipped  him  who  was  cru- 
cified in  Palestine  ;  that  this  their  first  lawgiver 
had  taught  them  that  they  were  all  brethren; 
that  they  had  a  great  contempt  for  the  things  of 
this  world,  and  looked  upon  them  as  common  ; 
that  they  flew  to  one  another's  relief;  that  they 
cherished  strong  hopes  of  immortality ;  that 
they  despised  death,  and  surrendered  them- 
selves to  sufferings. 


222  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

cc  The  same  may  be  observed  of  the  very  few 
Jewish  writers,  of  that  and  the  adjoining  peri- 
od, which  have  come  down  to  us.  Whatever 
they  omit,  or  whatever  difficulties  we  may  find 
in  explaining  the  omission,  they  advance  no 
other  history  of  the  transaction  than  that  which 
we  acknowledge.  Josephus,  who  wrote  his 
Antiquities  or  History  of  the  Jews  about  sixty 
years  after  the  commencement  of  Christianity,  in 
a  passage  generally  admitted  as  genuine,  makes 
mention  of  John,  under  the  name  of  John  the 
Baptist,  and  says  that  he  was  a  preacher  of  vir- 
tue ;  that  he  baptized  his  proselytes  ;  that  he 
was  well  received  by  the  people  ;  that  he  was 
imprisoned  and  put  to  death  by  Herod ;  and  that 
Herod  lived  with  Herodias,  his  brother's  wife. 

"  In  another  passage,  extant  in  every  copy  that 
remains  of  Josephus's  History,  but  the  authen- 
ticity of  which  has  nevertheless  been  disputed, 
we  have  an  explicit  testimony  to  the  substance 
of  our  history  in  these  words  : — c  At  that  time 
lived  Jesus,  a  wise  man,  if  he  may  be  called  a 
man,  for  he  performed  many  wonderful  works. 
He  was  a  teacher  of  such  men  as  received  the 
truth  with  pleasure.  He  drew  over  to  him 
many  Jews  and  Gentiles.    This  was  the  Christ ; 


parley's  farewell.  223 

and  when  Pilate,  at  the  instigation  of  the  chief 
men  among  us,  had  condemned  him  to  the 
cross,  they  who  before  had  conceived  an  affec- 
tion for  him,  did  not  cease  to  adhere  to  him  : 
for,  on  the  third  day,  he  appeared  to  them 
alive  again  ;  the  divine  prophets  having  fore- 
told these  and  many  wonderful  things  concern- 
ing him.  And  the  sect  of  the  Christians,  so 
called  from  him,  subsist  to  this  time.'" 

Now  let  it  be  considered  that  Christ's  reli- 
gion must  have  had  an  origin  ;  that  the  origin 
assigned  to  it  by  the  books  of  the  New  Testa- 
ment coincides  with,  and  accounts  for,  its  rapid 
extension  ;  that  no  history  inconsistent  with 
this  is  given,  even  by  the  enemies  and  persecutors 
of  the  Christians  ;  and  we  shall  see  that  there 
is  the  strongest  reason  to  receive  the  New-Tes- 
tament  history  as  true. 


Chapter   IX. 


All  the  Christian  writers,  from  the  earliest  to  the  latest  times,  speak  as  if 
the  New  Testament  account  of  Christ  and  his  religion  was  the  true  one,  and 
the  only  one. 

I  shall  here  quote  again  from  Dr.   Paley. 
"  The  whole  series  of  Christian  writers,  from 


224  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

the  first  age  of  the  institution  down  to  the  pres- 
ent, in  their  discussions,  apologies,  arguments, 
and  controversies,  proceed  upon  the  general 
story  which  our  Scriptures  contain,  and  upon 
no  other.  The  main  facts,  the  principal  agents, 
are  alike  in  all.  This  argument  will  appear  to 
be  of  great  force,  when  it  is  known  that  we  are 
able  to  trace  back  the  series  of  writers  to  a 
contact  with  the  historical  books  of  the  New 
Testament,  and  to  the  age  of  the  first  emissa- 
ries of  the  religion  ;  and  to  deduce  it,  by  an  un- 
broken continuation,  from  that  end  of  the  train 
to  the  present. 

"  The  remaining  letters  of  the  apostles,  (and 
what  more  original  than  their  letters  can  we 
have?)  though  written  without  the  remotest 
design  of  transmitting  the  history  of  Christ  or 
of  Christianity  to  future  ages,  or  even  of  mak- 
ing it  known  to  their  contemporaries,  inciden- 
tally disclose  to  us  the  following  circumstances  : 
— Christ's  descent  and  family  ;  his  innocence  ; 
the  meekness  and  gentleness  of  his  character 
(a  recognition  which  goes  to  the  whole  Gospel 
history) ;  his  exalted  nature ;  his  circumcision ; 
his  transfiguration  ;  his  life  of  opposition  and 
suffering  ;    his  patience   and  resignation ;    the 


parley's  farewell.  225 

appointment  of  the  eucharist,  and  the  manner 
of  it ;  bis  agony  ;  bis  confession  before  Pontius 
Pilate  ;  his  stripes,  crucifixion,  and  burial ; 
his  resurrection  ;  bis  appearance  after  it,  first 
to  Peter,  then  to  the  rest  of  the  apostles ; 
his  ascension  into  heaven,  and  his  designation 
to  be  the  future  judge  of  mankind  ;  the  stated 
residence  of  the  apostles  at  Jerusalem  ;  the 
working  of  miracles  by  the  first  preachers  of 
the  gospel,  who  were  also  the  hearers  of  Christ ; 
— the  successful  propagation  of  the  religion  ; 
the  persecution  of  its  followers  ;  the  miraculous 
conversion  of  Paul  ;  miracles  wrought  by  him- 
self, and  alleged  in  his  controversies  with  his  ad- 
versaries, and  in  letters  to  the  persons  amongst 
whom  they  were  wrought ;  finally,  that  mira- 
cles were  the  signs  of  an  apostle. 

"  In  an  epistle  bearing  the  name  of  Barna- 
bas, the  companion  of  Paul,  probably  genu- 
ine, certainly  belonging  to  that  age,  we  have 
the  sufferings  of  Christ,  his  choice  of  apostles 
and  their  number,  his  passion,  the  scarlet  robe, 
the  vinegar  and  gall,  the  mocking  and  piercing, 
the  casting  lots  for  his  coat,  his  resurrection  on 
the  eighth  (i.  e.  the  first)  day  of  the  week,  and 
the  commemorative  distinction  of  that  day,  his 
15 


226  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

manifestation  after  his  resurrection,  and,  lastly, 
his  ascension.  We  have  also  his  miracles  gen- 
erally but  positively  referred  to  in  the  following 
words  :  e  Finally,  teaching  the  people  of  Israel, 
and  doing  many  wonders  and  signs  among  them, 
he  preached  to  them,  and  showed  the  exceeding 
great  love  which  he  bare  towards  them/ 

"  In  an  epistle  of  Clement,  a  hearer  of  Saint 
Paul,  although  written  for  a  purpose  remotely 
connected  with  the  Christian  history,  we  have 
the  resurrection  of  Christ,  and  the  subsequent 
mission  of  the  apostles,  recorded  in  these  satis- 
factory terms  :  '  The  apostles  have  preached  to 
us  from  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  from  God  : — 
for,  having  received  their  command,  and  being 
thoroughly  assured  by  the  resurrection  of  our 
Lord  Jesus  Christ,  they  went  abroad  publish- 
ing that  the  kingdom  of  God  was  at  hand.' 
We  find  noticed,  also,  the  humility,  yet  the 
power  of  Christ,  his  descent  from  Abraham, 
his  crucifixion.  We  have  Peter  and  Paul  rep- 
resented as  faithful  and  righteous  pillars  of  the 
church  ;  the  numerous  sufferings  of  Peter  ;  the 
bonds,  stripes,  and  stoning  of  Paul,  and,  more 
particularly,  his  extensive  and  unwearied  trav- 
els. 


PARLEY'S    FAREWELL.  227 

"  In  an  epistle  of  Poly  carp,  a  disciple  of 
Saint  John,  though  only  a  brief  hortatory  let- 
ter, we  have  the  humility,  patience,  sufferings, 
resurrection,  and  ascension,  of  Christ,  together 
with  the  apostolic  character  of  Saint  Paul,  dis- 
tinctly recognised.  Of  this  same  father  we  are 
also  assured  by  Irenseus  that  he  (Irenseus)  had 
heard  him  relate,  '  what  he  had  received  from 
eye-witnesses  concerning  the  Lord,  both  con- 
cerning  his  miracles  and  his  doctrine/ 

"  In  the  remaining  works  of  Ignatius,  the 
contemporary  of  Polycarp,  the  occasional  allu- 
sions are  more  numerous.  The  descent  of 
Christ  from  David,  his  mother  Mary,  his  mirac- 
ulous conception,  the  star  at  his  birth,  his  bap- 
tism by  John,  the  reason  assigned  for  it,  his 
appeal  to  the  prophets,  the  ointment  poured  on 
his  head,  his  sufferings  under  Pontius  Pilate 
and  Herod  the  tetrarch,  his  resurrection,  the 
Lord's  day  called  and  kept  in  commemoration 
of  it,  and  the  eucharist,  in  both  its  parts — are 
unequivocally  referred  to.  Upon  the  resurrec- 
tion, this  writer  is  even  circumstantial.  He 
mentions  the  apostles'  eating  and  drinking  with 
Christ  after  he  had  risen,  their  feeling  and  their 
handling  him ;    from  which  last  circumstance 


228  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

Ignatius  raises  this  just  reflection  : — c  They  be- 
lieved, being  convinced  both  by  his  flesh  and 
spirit ;  for  this  cause,  they  despised  death,  and 
were  found  to  be  above  it. 

"  duadratus,  of  the  same  age  with  Ignatius, 
has  left  us  the  following  noble  testimony : 
c  The  works  of  our  Savior  were  always  con- 
spicuous, for  they  were  real ;  both  those  that 
were  healed,  and  those  that  were  raised  from 
the  dead  ;  who  were  seen  not  only  when  they 
were  healed  or  raised,  but  for  a  long  time  af- 
terward ;  not  only  whilst  he  dwelled  on  this 
earth,  but  also  after  his  departure,  and  for  a 
good  while  after  it,  insomuch  that  some  of  them 
have  reached  to  our  times.' 

"  Justin  Martyr  came  little  more  than  thirty 
years  after  Q,uadratus.  From  Justin's  works, 
which  are  still  extant,  might  be  collected  a  tol- 
erably complete  account  of  Christ's  life,  in  all 
points  agreeing  with  that  which  is  delivered  in 
our  Scriptures  ;  taken  indeed,  in  a  great  meas- 
ure, from  those  Scriptures,  but  still  proving 
that  this  account,  and  no  other,  was  the  ac- 
count known  and  extant  in  that  age.  The 
miracles,  in  particular,  which  form  the  part  of 
Christ's  history  most   material  to   be  traced, 


parley's   farewell.  229 

stand  fully  and  distinctly  recognised  in  the  fol- 
lowing passage  : — '  lie  healed  those  who  had 
been  blind,  and  deaf,  and  lame,  from  their 
birth  ;  causing,  by  his  word,  one  to  leap,  an- 
other to  hear,  and  a  third  to  see  :  and  by  rais- 
ing the  dead,  and  making  them  to  live,  he  in- 
duced, by  his  works,  the  men  of  that  age  to 
know  him.' 

"  It  is  unnecessary  to  carry  these  citations 
lower,  because  the  history,  after  this  time,  oc- 
curs in  ancient  Christian  writings  as  familiarly 
as  it  is  wont  to  do  in  modern  sermons  ;  occurs 
always  the  same  in  substance,  and  it  is  always 
that  which  our  evangelists  represent." 

Thus  it  appears,  not  only  that  the  main  facts 
of  the  New-Testament  history  are  confirmed 
by  heathen  writers,  while  the  opposers  of 
Christianity  set  up  no  other  historical  account 
of  Christ  and  his  religion  ;  but  that  all  the 
early  Christian  writers  agree  in,  and  confirm, 
the  very  details  of  that  history.  What  clearer 
or  stronger  evidence  can  we  ask,  to  prove  the 
historical  truth  of  the  New-Testament  books? 


230  REVEALED    RELIGION, 


Chapter  X. 

Proofs  that  the  books  of  the  New  Testament  were  written  by  their  reputed 
authors. 

Thus  far  I  have  spoken  rather  of  the  veracity 
of  the  New  Testament — let  me  now  enforce 
the  same  point  hy  showing  that  there  is  the 
best  reason  to  believe  that  the  books  of  the 
New  Testament  were  genuine,  and  written  by 
the  persons  to  whom  they  are  attributed.  "  We 
are  able  to  produce  a  great  number  of  ancient 
manuscript  copies,  found  indifferent  countries, 
and  in  countries  widely  distant  from  each  other, 
all  of  them  anterior  to  the  art  of  printing,  some 
certainly  seven  or  eight  hundred  years  old,  and 
some  which  have  been  preserved  probably 
above  a  thousand  years.  We  have  also  many 
ancient  versions  of  these  books,  and  some  of 
them  in  languages  which  are  not  at  present, 
nor  for  many  ages  have  been,  spoken  in  any 
part  of  the  world.  The  existence  of  these 
manuscripts  and  versions  proves  that  these 
Scriptures  were  not  the  production  of  any 
modern  contrivance. 

"  An  argument  of  great  weight  with  those 


parley's  farewell.  231 

who  are  judges  of  the  proofs  upon  which  it 
is  founded,  and  capable.,  through  their  testi- 
mony, of  being  addressed  to  every  understand- 
ing, is  that  which  arises  from  the  style  and 
language  of  the  New  Testament.  It  is  just 
such  a  language  as  might  be  expected  from  the 
apostles,  from  persons  of  their  age  and  in  their 
situation,  and  from  no  other  persons.  It  is  the 
style  neither  of  classic  authors,  nor  of  the  an- 
cient Christian  fathers,  but  Greek  coming  from 
men  of  Hebrew  origin  ;  abounding,  that  is,  with 
Hebraic  and  Syriac  idioms,  and  such  as  would 
naturally  be  found  in  the  writings  of  men  who 
used  a  language  spoken  indeed  where  they 
lived,  but  not  the  common  dialect  of  the  coun- 
try. This  striking  peculiarity  is  a  strong  proof 
of  the  genuineness  of  these  writings  :  for  who 
should  forge  them?  The  Christian  fathers 
were  for  the  most  part  totally  ignorant  of  He- 
brew, and  therefore  were  not  likely  to  insert 
Hebraisms  and  Syriasms  into  their  writings. 

"  Christian  writers  and  Christian  churches 
appear  to  have  soon  arrived  at  a  very  gene- 
ral agreement  upon  the  subject,  and  that  with- 
out the  interposition  of  any  public  authority. 
When  the  diversity  of  opinion  which  prevailed 


232  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

and  prevails  among  Christians  in  other  points, 
is  considered,  their  concurrence  in  the  canon 
of  Scripture  is  remarkable,  and  of  great  weight, 
especially  as  it  seems  to  have  been  the  result  of 
private  and  free  inquiry.  We  have  no  knowl- 
edge of  any  interference  of  authority  in  the 
question,  before  the  council  of  Laodicea,  in  the 
year  363." 

The  strongest  argument  respecting  the  gen- 
uineness of  ancient  writings  is  to  be  derived 
from  ancient  testimony.  This  is  full  and  com- 
plete as  it  regards  the  Gospels  and  the  Acts  of 
the  Apostles  ;  for  these  are  quoted  or  alluded 
to  as  genuine  by  a  series  of  Christian  writers, 
from  the  time  of  the  apostles  down  to  the  pres- 
ent day.  1  will  select  a  few  among  the  multi- 
tude of  proofs  of  this  kind,  and  commend  them 
to  the  special  attention  of  the  reader. 

"  There  is  extant  an  epistle  ascribed  to  Bar- 
nabas, the  companion  of  Paul.  It  is  quoted  as 
the  Epistle  of  Barnabas,  by  Clement  of  Alex- 
andria, a.  d.  194;  by  Origen,  a.  d.  230.  It 
is  mentioned  by  Eusebius,  a.  d.  315,  and  by 
Jerome,  a.  d.  392,  as  an  ancient  work  in  their 
time,  bearing  the  name  of  Barnabas,  and  as  well 
known  and  read  amongst    Christians,  though 


parley's  farewell.  233 

not  accounted  a  part  of  Scripture.  It  purports 
to  have  been  written  soon  after  the  destruction 
of  Jerusalem,  during  the  calamities  which  fol- 
lowed that  disaster  ;  and  it  bears  the  character 
of  the  age  to  which  it  professes  to  belong. 

"  In  this  epistle  appears  the  following  re- 
markable passage  : — c  Let  us,  therefore,  beware 
lest  it  come  upon  us,  as  it  is  written  ;  there  are 
many  called,  few  chosen.'  From  the  expres- 
sion, 'as  it  is  written,'  we  infer  with  certainty, 
that,  at  the  time  when  the  author  of  this  epistle 
lived,  there  was  a  book  extant,  well  known  to 
Christians,  and  of  authority  amongst  them, 
containing  these  words : — '  Many  are  called,  few 
chosen.'  Such  a  book  is  our  present  Gospel 
of  Saint  Matthew,  in  which  this  text  is  twice 
found,  and  is  found  in  no  other  book  now  known. 

"  We  are  in  possession  of  an  epistle 
written  by  Clement,  bishop  of  Rome,  whom 
ancient  writers,  without  any  doubt  or  scruple, 
assert  to  have  been  the  Clement  whom  Saint 
Paul  mentions,  Phil.  iv.  3.  ;  '  with  Clement 
also,  and  other  my  fellow-laborers,  whose  names 
are  in  the  book  of  life.'  This  epistle  is  spoken 
of  by  the  ancients  as  an  epistle  acknowledged 
by  all ;    and,  as  Irenoeus  well  represents  its 


234  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

value,  '  written  by  Clement,  who  had  seen  the 
blessed  apostles,  and  conversed  with  them  ;  who 
had  the  preaching  of  the  apostles  still  sounding 
in  his  ears,  and  their  traditions  before  his  eyes.' 
It  is  addressed  to  the  church  of  Corinth  ;  and 
what  alone  may  seem  almost  decisive  of  its  au- 
thenticity, Dionysius,  bishop  of  Corinth,  about 
the  year  170,  i.  e.  about  eighty  or  ninety  years 
after  the  epistle  was  written,  bears  witness, 
4  that  it  had  been  wont  to  be  read  in  that  church 
from  ancient  times/ 

"  This  epistle  affords,  amongst  others,  the 
following  valuable  passages  : — '  Especially  re- 
membering the  words  of  the  Lord  Jesus  which 
he  spake,  teaching  gentleness  and  long-suffering : 
for  thus  he  said  :  "  Be  ye  merciful,  that  ye  may 
obtain  mercy  ;  forgive,  that  it  may  be  forgiven 
unto  you  ;  as  you  do,  so  shall  it  be  done  unto 
you  ;  as  you  give,  so  shall  it  be  given  unto 
you  ;  as  ye  judge,  so  shall  ye  be  judged  ;  as 
ye  show  kindness,  so  shall  kindness  be  shown 
unto  you  ;  with  what  measure  ye  mete,  with 
the  same  shall  it  be  measured  to  you."  By 
this  command  and  by  these  rules,  let  us  estab- 
lish ourselves,  that  ye  may  always  walk  obedi- 
ently to  his  holy  words.' 


PARLEYS    FAREWELL.  235 

"Again  ;  '  Remember  the  words  of  the  Lord 
Jesus,  for  he  said,  "  Woe  to  that  man  by  whom 
offences  come  ;  it  were  better  for  him  that  he 
had  not  been  born,  than  that  he  should  offend 
one  of  my  elect ;  it  were  better  for  him  that  a 
millstone  should  be  tied  about  his  neck,  and 
that  he  should  be  drowned  in  the  sea,  than  that 
he  should  offend  one  of  my  little  ones."' 

"  In  both  these  passages,  we  perceive  the 
high  respect  paid  to  the  words  of  Christ  as  re- 
corded by  the  evangelists  ;  '  Remember  the 
words  of  the  Lord  Jesus  ; — by  this  command, 
and  by  these  rules,  let  us  establish  ourselves, 
that  we  may  always  walk  obediently  to  his  holy 
words/  We  perceive  also  in  Clement  a  total 
unconsciousness  of  doubt,  whether  these  were 
the  real  words  of  Christ,  which  are  read  as 
such  in  the  Gospels. 

"  Ignatius,  as  it  is  testified  by  ancient  Chris- 
tian writers,  became  bishop  of  Antioch  about 
thirty-seven  years  after  Christ's  ascension ; 
and  therefore,  from  his  time,  and  place,  and 
station,  it  is  probable  that  he  had  known  and 
conversed  with  many  of  the  apostles.  Epis- 
tles of  Ignatius  are  referred  to  by  Polycarp, 
his  contemporary.     Passages  found  in  the  epis- 


236  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

ties  now  extant  under  his  name,  are  quoted 
by  Irenaeus,  a.  d.  178  ;  by  Qrigen,  a.  d.  230  ; 
and  the  occasion  of  writing  the  epistles  is  given 
at  large  by  Eusebius  and  Jerome.  What  are 
called  the  smaller  epistles  of  Ignatius,  are  gen- 
erally deemed  to  be  those  which  were  read  by 
Ireneeus,  Origen,  and  Eusebius. 

"  Polycarp  had  been  taught  by  the  apostles; 
had  conversed  with  many  who  had  seen  Christ ; 
was  also  by  the  apostles  appointed  bishop  of 
Smyrna.  This  testimony  concerning  Poly- 
carp is  given  by  Irenseus,  who  in  his  youth  had 
seen  him  : — '  I  can  tell  the  place  (saith  Irenae- 
us)  in  which  the  blessed  Polycarp  sat  and 
taught,  and  his  going  out  and  coming  in,  and 
the  manner  of  his  life,  and  the  form  of  his  per- 
son, and  the  discourses  he  made  to  the  people, 
and  how  he  related  his  conversation  with  John, 
and  others  who  had  seen  the  Lord,  and  how  he 
related  their  sayings,  and  what  he  had  heard 
concerning  the  Lord,  both  concerning  his 
miracles  and  his  doctrine,  as  he  had  received 
them  from  the  eye-witnesses  of  the  Word  of 
life ;  all  which  Polycarp  related  agreeable  to  the 
Scriptures/ 

"  Of  Polycarn,  whose  proximity  to  the  age 


parley's   farewell.  237 

and  country  and  persons  of  the  apostles  is  thus 
attested,  we  have  one  undoubted  epistle  remain- 
ing. And  this,  though  a  short  letter,  contains 
nearly  forty  clear  allusions  to  the  books  of  the 
New  Testament ;  which  is  strong  evidence  of 
the  respect  which  Christians  of  that  age  bore 
for  these  books. 

"  Amongst  these,  although  the  writings  of 
Saint  Paul  are  more  frequently  used  by  Poly- 
carp  than  any  other  parts  of  Scripture,  there 
are  copious  allusions  to  the  Gospel  of  Saint 
Matthew,  some  to  passages  found  in  the  Gos- 
pels both  of  Matthew  and  Luke,  and  some 
which  more  nearly  resemble  the  words  in 
Luke. 

"  I  select  the  following,  as  fixing  the  autho- 
rity of  the  Lord's  prayer,  and  the  use  of  it 
amongst  the  primitive  Christians  :  '  If  there- 
fore we  pray  the  Lord  that  he  will  forgive  us, 
we  ought  also  to  forgive.' 

"  '  With  supplication  beseeching  the  all-see- 
ing God  not  to  lead  us  into  temptation.' 

"  The  writers  hitherto  alleged,  had  all  lived 
and  conversed  with  some  of  the  apostles.  The 
works  of  theirs  which  remain,  are  in  general 
very  short  pieces,  yet  rendered  extremely  valu- 


238  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

able  by  their  antiquity ;  and  none,  short  as 
they  are,  but  what  contain  some  important  tes- 
timony to  our  historical  Scriptures. " 

It  is  hardly  necessary  to  accumulate  this  kind 
of  evidence.  It  is  sufficient  to  observe  that  ref- 
erences to  the  historical  books  of  the  New  Tes- 
tament, similar  to  these,  are  scattered  through 
the  writings  of  various  authors  of  every  age, 
from  the  day  of  the  apostles  to  the  present  time. 
I  will  add,  however,  a  single  reference  to  Eu- 
sebius,  bishop  of  Cesarea,  who  wrote  about 
the  year  315.  He  was  a  learned  and  diligent 
scholar,  and  composed  a  history  of  the  affairs 
of  Christianity,  from  its  origin  to  his  own  time. 
In  this  work,  he  speaks  of  the  occasion  "  of 
writing  the  four  Gospels,  and  of  the  order  in 
which  they  were  written.  The  title  of  the 
chapter  is,  '  Of  the  Order  of  the  Gospels  ;'  and 
it  begins  thus  :  '  Let  us  observe  the  writings 
of  this  apostle  John,  which  are  not  contradicted 
by  any  :  and,  first  of  all,  must  be  mentioned, 
as  acknowledged  by  all,  the  Gospel  according 
to  him,  well  known  to  all  the  churches  under 
heaven  ;  and  that  it  has  been  justly  placed  by 
the  ancients  the  fourth  in  order,  and  after  the 
other  three,  may  be  made  evident  in  this  man- 


parley's  farewell.  239 

ner.' — Eusebius  then  proceeds  to  show  that 
John  wrote  the  last  of  the  four,  and  that  his  Gos- 
pel was  intended  to  supply  the  omissions  of  the 
others  ;  especially  in  the  part  of  our  Lord's 
ministry  which  took  place  before  the  imprison- 
ment of  John  the  Baptist.  He  observes,  '  that 
the  apostles  of  Christ  were  not  studious  of  the 
ornaments  of  composition,  nor  indeed  forward 
to  write  at  all,  being  wholly  occupied  with 
their  ministry.'" 

It  appears  to  me  that  the  evidence  is  now 
complete  to  show  that  the  four  Gospels  and  the 
Acts  of  the  Apostles  were  written  by  those  to 
whom  they  are  attributed,  and  that  they  are 
therefore  authentic.  In  confirmation  of  this 
conclusion,  Dr.  Paley  states  and  proves  the 
following  propositions  : 

"  That  when  the  books  of  the  New  Testa- 
ment are  quoted,  or  alluded  to,  by  the  early  wri- 
ters, they  are  quoted  or  alluded  to  with  peculiar 
respect,  as  possessing  an  authority  which  be- 
longed to  no  other  books,  and  as  conclusive  in 
all  questions  and  controversies  amongst  Chris- 
tians. 

"  That  they  were,  in  very  early  times,  col- 
lected into  a  distinct  volume. 


240  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

"  That  they  were  distinguished  by  appropri- 
ate names  and  titles  of  respect. 

"  That  they  were  publicly  read  and  expound- 
ed in  the  religious  assemblies  of  the  early 
Christians. 

"  That  commentaries  were  written  upon 
them,  harmonies  formed  out  of  them,  different 
copies  carefully  collated,  and  versions  of  them 
made  into  different  languages. 

Ci  That  they  were  received  by  Christians  of 
different  sects,  and  usually  appealed  to  by  both 
sides  in  the  controversies  which  arose  in  those 
days. 

"  That  the  four  Gospels,  the  Acts  of  the 
Apostles,  thirteen  Epistles  of  Saint  Paul,  the 
first  Epistle  of  John,  and  the  first  of  Peter, 
were  received,  without  doubt,  by  those  who 
doubted  concerning  the  other  books  which  are 
included  in  our  present  canon. 

"  That  the  Gospels  were  attacked  by  the 
early  adversaries  of  Christianity,  as  books  con- 
taining the  accounts  upon  which  the  religion 
was  founded. 

"  That  formal  catalogues  of  authentic  Scrip- 
tures were  published  ;  in  all  which  our  present 
sacred  histories  were  included." 


parley's  farewell.  241 


Chapter    XI. 

Internal  evidences  of  the  truth  of  the  Scriptures.  Candor  of  the  writers. 
Passages  unlikely  to  be  the  n-ork  of  impostors.  Naturalness  of  some  pas- 
sages. 

The  external  or  historical  proof  of  the  truth 
and  genuineness  of  the  books  of  the  New  Tes- 
tament, or  at  least  of  the  most  of  them,  which 
has  been  adduced,  seems  to  me  to  place  the 
question  at  issue  beyond  reasonable  dispute. 
But  on  a  subject  of  such  vital  interest,  it  is 
desirable  to  strengthen  our  confidence  by  all 
the  arguments  which  may  fairly  be  urged  in  fa- 
vor of  the  position  we  assume.  Let  me  there- 
fore present  some  of  the  internal  evidences  of 
the  truth  of  the  New  Testament. 

It  may  be  proper  to  remark,  in  the  first  place, 
that  if  the  New-Testament  books  are  not  true, 
they  must  have  been  written  by  impostors. 
Now  it  appears  to  me  that  the  candor  of  the  wri- 
ters of  these,  forbids  such  a  supposition.  From 
among  a  multitude  of  passages  which  display 
this  mark  of  integrity,  let  me  select  a  few. 

"  There  are    some    instances  in  which  the 
evangelists    honestly    relate   what,   they   must 
have  perceived,  would  make  against  them. 
16 


24)2  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

"  Of  this  kind  is  John  the  Baptist's  mes- 
sage, preserved  by  Saint  Matthew,  (xi.  2.)  and 
Saint  Luke  (vii.  18.) :  '  Now  when  John  had 
heard  in  prison  the  works  of  Christ,  he  sent 
two  of  his  disciples,  and  said  unto  him,  Art 
thou  he  that  should  come,  or  look  we  for  an- 
other?' To  confess,  still  more  to  state,  that 
John  the  Baptist  had  his  doubts  concerning  the 
character  of  Jesus,  could  not  but  afford  a  han- 
dle to  cavil  and  objection.  But  truth,  like 
honesty,  neglects  appearances. 

"  John  vi.  66.  '  From  that  time,  many  of  his 
disciples  went  back,  and  walked  no  more  with 
him/  Was  it  the  part  of  a  writer,  who  dealt 
in  suppression  and  disguise,  to  put  down  this 
anecdote? 

"  Where  do  we  discern  a  stronger  mark  of 
candor,  or  less  disposition  to  extol  and  magnify, 
than  in  the  conclusion  of  the  history  in  which 
the  evangelist,  after  relating  that  Paul,  on  his 
first  arrival  at  Rome,  preached  to  the  Jews 
from  morning  until  evening,  adds,  'And  some 
believed  the  things  which  were  spoken,  and 
some  believed  not  V  " 

These  passages  show  the  candor  of  the  wri- 
ters of  the  New  Testament ;  there  are  others 


parley's  farewell.  243 

that  do  not  seem  likely  to  have  occurred  to  a 
forger  or  an  impostor.  The  following  are  in- 
stances : 

"  Luke  ix.  59.  '  And  he  said  unto  another, 
Follow  me  :  but  he  said,  Lord,  suffer  me  first 
to  go  and  bury  my  father.  Jesus  said  unto 
him,  Let  the  dead  bury  their  dead,  but  go  thou 
and  preach  the  kingdom  of  God.'  This  an- 
swer, though  very  expressive  of  the  transcend- 
ent importance  of  religious  concerns,  was  ap- 
parently harsh  and  repulsive ;  and  such  as 
would  not  have  been  made  for  Christ,  if  he  had 
not  really  used  it.  At  least  some  other  in- 
stances would  have  been  chosen. 

"  The  following  passage,  for  the  same  rea- 
son, I  think  impossible  to  have  been  the  pro- 
duction of  artifice,  or  of  a  cold  forgery  : — '  But 
I  say  unto  you,  that  whosoever  is  angry  with 
his  brother  without  a  cause  shall  be  in  danger 
of  the  judgment ;  and  whosoever  shall  say  to 
his  brother,  Raca,  shall  be  in  danger  of  the 
council ;  but  whosoever  shall  say,  Thou  fool, 
shall  be  in  danger  of  hell-fire,  (Gehennce).9 
Matt.  v.  22.  It  is  emphatic,  cogent,  and  well 
calculated  for  the  purpose  of  impression  ;  but 
is  inconsistent  with  the  supposition  of  art  or 
wariness  on  the  part  of  the  relater. 


244  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

"  Christ's  taking  a  young  child,  and  placing 
it  in  the  midst  of  his  contentious  disciples, 
(Matt,  xviii.  2.)  though  as  decisive  a  proof  as 
could  be  of  the  benignity  of  his  temper,  and 
very  expressive  of  the  character  of  the  religion 
which  he  wished  to  inculcate,  was  not  by  any 
means  an  obvious  thought.  Nor  am  I  ac- 
quainted with  any  thing  in  any  ancient  writing 
which  resembles  it." 

There  are  other  passages  which  are  so  natu- 
ral, as  to  compel  the  mind  to  believe  that  the 
writers  were  telling  the  plain  unvarnished  truth. 

"  Mark  ix.  23.  '  Jesus  said  unto  him,  If 
thou  canst  believe,  ail  things  are  possible  to  him 
that  believeth.  And  straightway  the  father  of 
the  child  cried  out  and  said  with  tears,  Lord, 
I  believe  ;  help  thou  mine  unbelief.'  The 
struggle  in  the  father's  heart,  between  solici- 
tude for  the  preservation  of  his  child,  and  a  kind 
of  involuntary  distrust  of  Christ's  power  to 
heal  him,  is  here  expressed  with  an  air  of  real- 
ity, which  could  hardly  be  counterfeited. 

"  Again,  (Matt.  xxi.  9.)  the  eagerness  of  the 
people  to  introduce  Christ  into  Jerusalem,  and 
their  demand,  a  short  time  afterward,  of  his  cru- 
cifixion, when  he  did  not  turn  out  what  they 


parley's  farewell.  24)5 

expected  him  to  be,  so  far  from  affording  mat- 
ter of  objection,  represents  popular  favor  in 
exact  agreement  with  nature  and  with  experi- 
ence, as  the  flux  and  reflux  of  a  wave. 

"  The  rulers  and  Pharisees  rejecting  Christ, 
whilst  many  of  the  common  people  received 
him,  was  the  effect  which,  in  the  then  state  of 
Jewish  prejudices,  I  should  have  expected. 
And  the  reason  with  which  they  who  rejected 
Christ's  mission  kept  themselves  in  counte- 
nance, and  with  which  also  they  answered  the 
arguments  of  those  who  favored  it,  is  precisely 
the  reason  which  such  men  usually  give  : — 
c  Have  any  of  the  scribes  or  Pharisees  believed 
on  him?'  (John  vii.  48.) 

"  In  our  Lord's  conversation  at  the  well, 
(John  iv.  29.)  Christ  had  surprised  the  Samar- 
itan woman  with  an  allusion  to  a  single  partic- 
ular in  her  domestic  situation,  '  Thou  hast  had 
five  husbands  ;  and  he  whom  thou  now  hast  is 
not  thy  husband.'  The  woman,  soon  after  this, 
ran  back  to  the  city,  and  called  out  to  her 
neighbors,  c  Come,  see  a  man  which  told  me 
all  things  that  ever  I  did.'  This  exaggeration 
appears  to  me  very  natural ;  especially  in  the 
hurried  state  of  spirits  into  which  the  woman 
may  be  supposed  to  have  been  thrown. 


246  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

"  The  consistency  of  Saint  Paul's  character 
throughout  the  whole  of  his  history  (viz.  the 
warmth  and  activity  of  his  zeal,  first  against, 
and  then  for  Christianity),  carries  with  it  very 
much  the  appearance  of  truth. " 


Chapter   XII. 


Consistency  and  unity  of  the  character  of  Christ,  as  drawn  by  the  several 
Evangelists.  Harmony  of  the  Gospel  history,  in  dates,  events  and  allusions 
to  manners  and  customs,  with  other  histories. 

Two  things  should  be  kept  in  mind,  that  the 
four  evangelists  were  all  of  them  ordinary  men, 
of  little  learning,  and  entirely  unskilled  as  wri- 
ters ;  while  they  are  describing  one  of  the  most 
extraordinary  characters  that  ever  lived  :  and 
moreover,  it  seems  that  they  wrote  without 
concert,  or  agreement  between  each  other. 
Yet  it  appears,  on  careful  examination,  that  in 
delineating  the  character  of  Jesus,  they  are  per- 
fectly harmonious.  How  could  this  wonderful 
unity  happen,  if  these  men  were  not  merely  de- 
scribing a  character  that  they  had  seen?  Could 
such  harmony  have  been  attained,  under  these 


parley's  farewell.  247 

circumstances,  if  these  men  were  fabricating  a 
falsehood? 

There  is  a  series  of  strong  and  convincing 
proofs  of  the  truth  of  the  Gospel  narratives,  to  be 
derived  from  comparing  the  historical  facts  and 
events,  stated  by  the  New-Testament  writers, 
with  facts  and  events  relating  to  the  same  peri- 
od, as  stated  by  other  writers.  The  following 
are  instances. 

"Matt.  ii.  22.  'When  he  (Joseph)  heard 
that  Archelaus  did  reign  in  Judea,  in  the  room 
of  his  father  Herod,  he  was  afraid  to  go  thither : 
notwithstanding,  being  warned  of  God  in  a 
dream,  he  turned  aside  into  the  parts  of  Gali- 
lee.' 

"  In  this  passage  it  is  asserted,  that  Arche- 
laus succeeded  Herod  in  Judea  ;  and  it  is  im- 
plied that  his  power  did  not  extend  to  Galilee. 
Now  we  learn  from  Josephus,  that  Herod  the 
Great,  whose  dominion  included  all  the  land  of 
Israel,  appointed  Archelaus  his  successor  in 
Judea,  and  assigned  the  rest  of  his  domin- 
ions to  other  sons  ;  and  that  this  disposition  was 
ratified,  as  to  the  main  parts  of  it,  by  the  Ro- 
man emperor. 

"  Saint  Matthew  says,  that  Archelaus  reign- 


248  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

ed,  was  king  in  Judea.  Agreeably  to  this,  we 
are  informed  by  Josephus,  not  only  that  Herod 
appointed  Archelaus  his  successor  in  Judea, 
but  that  he  also  appointed  him  with  the  title  of 
King;  and  the  Greek  verb  which  the  evan- 
gelist uses  to  denote  the  government  and  rank 
of  Archelaus,  is  used  likewise  by  Josephus. 

"  Luke  iii.  1.  'In  the  fifteenth  year  of  the 
reign  of  Tiberius  Caesar, — Herod  being  te- 
trarch  of  Galilee,  and  his  brother  Philip  te- 
trarch  of  Iturea  and  of  the  region  of  Trachoni- 
tis, — the  word  of  God  came  unto  John.' 

"Mark  vi.  17.  'Herod  had  sent  forth,  and 
laid  hold  upon  John,  and  bound  him  in  prison, 
for  Herodias'  sake,  his  brother  Philip's  wife ; 
for  he  had  married  her.' 

"  With  this  compare  Joseph.  Antiq.  1.  xviii. 
6.  sect.  1. — '  He  (Herod  the  tetrarch)  made  a 
visit  to  Herod  his  brother. — Here,  falling  in 
love  with  Herodias,  the  wife  of  the  said  Herod, 
he  ventured  to  make  her  proposals  of  marriage.' 

"  Again,  Mark  vi.  22.  c  And  when  the  daugh- 
ter of  the  said  Herodias  came  in  and  danced — .' 

"  With  this  also  compare  Joseph.  Antiq.  1. 
xviii.  c.  6.  sect.  4.  '  Herodias  was  married  to 
Herod,  son  of  Herod  the  Great.     They  had  a 


parley's  farewell.  249 

daughter,  whose  name  was  Salome ;  aftei 
whose  birth,  Herodias,  in  utter  violation  of  the 
laws  of  her  country,  left  her  husband,  then  liv- 
ing, and  married  Herod  the  tetrarch  of  Galilee, 
her  husband's  brother  by  the  father's  side/ 

"  Acts  xii.  1.  '  Now,  about  that  time,  Herod 
the  king  stretched  forth  his  hands  to  vex  certain 
of  the  church.'  In  the  conclusion  of  the  same 
chapter,  Herod's  death  is  represented  to  have 
taken  place  soon  after  this  persecution.  The 
accuracy  of  our  historian,  or,  rather,  the  un- 
meditated coincidence,  which  truth  of  its  own 
accord  produces,  is  in  this  instance  remarka- 
ble. There  was  no  portion  of  time,  for  thirty 
years  before,  nor  ever  afterward,  in  which  there 
was  a  king  at  Jerusalem,  a  person  exercising 
that  authority  in  Judea,  or  to  whom  that  title 
could  be  applied,  except  the  three  last  years 
of  this  Herod's  life,  within  which  period  the 
transaction  recorded  in  the  Acts  is  stated  to 
have  taken  place. 

"Acts  xii.  19—23.  ' And  he  (Herod)  went 
down  from  Judea  to  Cesarea,  and  there  abode. 
— And  on  a  set  day,  Herod,  arrayed  in  royal 
apparel,  sat  upon  his  throne,  and  made  an  ora- 
tion unto  them  ;  and  the  people  gave  a  shout, 


250  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

saying,  It  is  the  voice  of  a  god,  and  not  of 
a  man  ;  and  immediately  the  angel  of  the  Lord 
smote  him,  because  he  gave  not  God  the  glory  : 
and  he  was  eaten  of  worms,  and  gave  up  the 
ghost.' 

"  Joseph.  Antiq.  lib.  xix.  c.  8.  sect.  2.  '  He 
went  to  the  city  of  Cesarea.  Here  he  celebra- 
ted shows  in  honor  of  Caesar.  On  the  second 
day  of  the  shows,  early  in  the  morning,  he 
came  into  the  theatre,  dressed  in  a  robe  of  sil- 
ver, of  most  curious  workmanship.  The  rays 
of  the  rising  sun,  reflected  from  such  a  splendid 
garb,  gave  him  a  majestic  and  awful  appear- 
ance. They  called  him  a  god  ;  and  entreated 
him  to  be  propitious  to  them,  saying,  Hitherto 
we  have  respected  you  as  a  man  ;  but  now  we 
acknowledge  you  to  be  more  than  mortal.  The 
king  neither  reproved  these  persons,  nor  reject- 
ed the  impious  flattery. — Immediately  after 
this,  he  was  seized  with  pains  in  his  bowels,  ex- 
tremely violent  at  the  very  first.  He  was  car- 
ried therefore  with  all  haste  to  his  palace. 
These  pains  continually  tormenting  him,  he  ex- 
pired in  five  days'  time/ 

"  The  reader  will  perceive  the  accordancy 
of  these  accounts  in  various  particulars.     The 


parley's  farewell.  251 

place  (Cesarea),  the  set  day,  the  gorgeous 
dress,  the  acclamations  of  the  assembly,  the 
peculiar  turn  of  the  flattery,  the  reception  of  it, 
the  sudden  and  critical  incursion  of  the  disease, 
are  circumstances  noticed  in  both  narratives. 
The  worms,  mentioned  by  Saint  Luke,  are  not 
remarked  by  Josephus  ;  but  the  appearance  of 
these  is  a  symptom,  not  unusually,  I  believe, 
attending  the  diseases  which  Josephus  de- 
scribes, viz.  violent  affections  of  the  bowels. 

"  Acts  xxiv.  24.  'And  after  certain  days, 
when  Felix  came  with  his  wife  Drusilla,  which 
was  a  Jewess,  he  sent  for  Paul/ 

"  Joseph.  Antiq.  lib.  xx.  c.  6.  sect.  1,  2. 
'  Agrippa  gave  his  sister  Drusilla  in  marriage 
to  Azizus,  king  of  the  Emesenes,  when  he  had 
consented  to  be  circumcised. — But  this  mar- 
riage of  Drusilla  with  Azizus  was  dissolved  in 
a  short  time  after  this  manner  : — When  Felix 
was  procurator  of  Judea,  having  had  a  sight  of 
her,  he  was  mightily  taken  with  her. — She  was 
induced  to  transgress  the  laws  of  her  country, 
and  marry  Felix/ 

"  Here  the  public  station  of  Felix,  the  name 
of  his  wife,  and  the  singular  circumstance  of 
her  religion,  all  appear  in  perfect  conformity 
with  the  evangelist. 


252  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

"Acts  xxi.  30.  'And  they  took  Paul,  and 
drew  him  out  of  the  temple  ;  and  forthwith  the 
doors  were  shut.  And  as  they  went  about  to 
kill  him,  tidings  came  to  the  chief  captain  of 
the  band,  that  all  Jerusalem  was  in  an  uproar. 
Then  the  chief  captain  came  near  and  command- 
ed him  to  be  bound  with  two  chains,  and  demand- 
ed who  he  was,  and  what  he  had  done ;  and  some 
cried  one  thing,  and  some  another,  among  the 
multitude:  and,  when  he  could  not  know  the 
certainty  for  the  tumult,  he  commanded  him  to 
be  carried  into  the  castle.  And  when  he  came 
upon  the  stairs,  so  it  was,  that  he  was  borne 
of  the  soldiers  for  the  violence  of  the  people.' 

"  In  this  quotation  we  have  the  band  of  Ro- 
man soldiers  at  Jerusalem,  their  office  (to  sup- 
press tumults),  the  castle,  the  stairs,  both,  as  it 
should  seem,  adjoining  to  the  temple.  Let  us 
inquire  whether  we  can  find  these  particulars  in 
any  other  record  of  that  age  and  place. 

"  Joseph,  lib.  v.  c.  5.  sect.  8.  '  Antonia  was 
situated  at  the  angle  of  the  western  and  north- 
ern porticos  of  the  outer  temple.  It  was  built 
upon  a  rock  fifty  cubits  high,  steep  on  all  sides. 
On  that  side  where  it  joined  to  the  porticos  of 
the  temple,  there  were  stairs  reaching  to  each 


parley's   farewell.  253 

portico,  by  which  the  guard  descended  ;  for 
there  was  always  lodged  here  a  Roman  legion, 
and  posting  themselves  in  their  armor  in  seve- 
ral places  in  the  porticos,  they  kept  a  watch  on 
the  people  on  the  feast-days  to  prevent  all  dis- 
orders ;  for  as  the  temple  was  a  guard  to  the 
city,  so  was  Antonia  to  the  temple.' 

"John  iv.  20.  'Our  fathers,'  said  the  Sa- 
maritan woman,  '  worshipped  in  this  mountain; 
and  ye  say,  that  Jerusalem  is  the  place  where 
men  ought  to  worship.' 

"Joseph.  Antiq.  lib.  xviii.  c.  5.  sect.  1. 
'  Commanding  them  to  meet  him  at  mount 
Gerizim,  which  is  by  them  (the  Samaritans) 
esteemed  the  most  sacred  of  all  mountains.' 

"  Acts  iii.  1.  '  Now  Peter  and  John  went  up 
together  into  the  temple,  at  the  hour  of  prayer, 
being  the  ninth  hour.' 

"Joseph.  Antiq.  lib.  xv.  c.  7.  sect.  8.  '  Twice 
every  day,  in  the  morning  and  at  the  ninth  hour, 
the  priests  perform  their  duty  at  the  altar.' 

"Acts  xv.  21.  'For  Moses,  of  old  time, 
hath,  in  every  city,  them  that  preach  him, 
being  read  in  the  synagogues  every  sabbath- 
day.' 

"  Joseph,  contra  Ap.    1.  ii.    c  He   (Moses) 


254*  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

gave  us  the  law ;  the  most  excellent  of  all  in- 
stitutions ;  nor  did  he  appoint  that  it  should  be 
heard  once  only,  or  twice,  or  often,  but  that, 
laying  aside  all  other  works,  we  should  meet 
together  every  week  to  hear  it  read,  and  gain  a 
perfect  understanding  of  it.' 

"Acts  xxi.  23.  'We  have  four  men  which 
have  a  vow  on  them  ;  them  take,  and  purify 
thyself  with  them,  that  they  may  shave  their 
heads.1 

"Joseph,  de  Bell.  1.  xi.  c.  15.  'It  is  cus- 
tomary for  those  who  have  been  afflicted  with 
some  distemper,  or  have  labored  under  any 
other  difficulties,  to  make  a  vow  thirty  days 
before  they  offer  sacrifices,  to  abstain  from 
wine,  and  shave  the  hair  of  their  heads.'  " 

Now  these  are  only  a  few  of  the  coincidences 
which  Dr.  Paley  has  pointed  out  between  the 
writers  of  the  New  Testament  and  other  histo- 
rians of  the  time  and  country.  Can  any  man 
say  or  believe  that  it  is  possible  for  a  person, 
much  less  for  several  persons,  to  sit  down  and 
form  a  tissue  of  falsehoods,  in  which  the  histor- 
ical dates  and  events,  and  the  allusions  to  man- 
ners and  customs,  shall  be  all  accurate?  Why, 
if  these  are  minutely  true,  shall  we  doubt  the 


parley's   farewell.  255 

rest  of  the  story?  Does  not  accuracy  in  these 
particulars  confirm  the  accuracy  of  the  whole 
narrative? 


Chapter  XIII. 

Morality  of  the  Gospel. 


Keeping  in  view  the  character  of  the  evan- 
gelists, let  us  consider  the  doctrines  which  they 
say  Christ  taught,  as  well  as  the  manner  of  his 
teaching,  and  ask  ourselves  whether  ignorant, 
unlettered  men  could  have  invented  these 
things. 

"  There  are  two  opposite  descriptions  of 
character  under  which  mankind  may  generally 
be  classed.  The  one  possesses  vigor,  firmness, 
resolution  ;  is  daring  and  active,  quick  in  its 
sensibilities,  jealous  of  its  fame,  eager  in  its 
attachments,  inflexible  in  its  purpose,  violent  in 
its  resentments. 

"  The  other  is  meek,  yielding,  complying, 
forgiving  ;  not  prompt  to  act,  but  willing  to 
suffer  ;  silent  and  gentle  under  rudeness  and 
insult,  suing   for   reconciliation  where   others 


256  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

would  demand  satisfaction,  giving  way  to  the 
pushes  of  impudence,  conceding  and  indulgent 
to  the  prejudices,  the  wrongheadedness,  the 
intractability,  of  those  with  whom  it  has  to  deal. 

"  The  former  of  these  characters  is,  and 
ever  hath  been,  the  favorite  of  the  world.  It 
is  the  character  of  great  men.  There  is  a  dig- 
nity in  it  which  universally  commands  respect. 

"  The  latter  is  esteemed  by  the  world  poor- 
spirited,  tame,  and  abject.  Yet  so  it  hath  hap- 
pened, that,  with  the  Founder  of  Christianity, 
this  latter  is  the  subject  of  his  commenda- 
tion, his  precepts,  his  examples  ;  and  that  the 
former  is  so  in  no  part  of  its  composition. 
This,  and  nothing  else,  is  the  character  design- 
ed in  the  following  remarkable  passages  :  c  Re- 
sist not  evil  ;  but  whosoever  shall  smite  thee  on 
the  right  cheek,  turn  to  him  the  other  also  : 
and  if  any  man  will  sue  thee  at  the  law,  and 
take  away  thy  coat,  let  him  have  thy  cloak  also  : 
and  whosoever  shall  compel  thee  to  go  a  mile, 
go  with  him  twain :  love  your  enemies,  bless 
them  that  curse  you,  do  good  to  them  that  hate 
you,  and  pray  for  them  which  despitefully  use 
you  and  persecute  you.'  This  certainly  is  not 
common-place  morality.     It  is  very    original. 


parley's  farewell.  257 

It  shows  at  least  (and  it  is  for  this  purpose  we 
produce  it)  that  no  two  things  can  be  more  dif- 
ferent than  the  Heroic  and  the  Christian  char- 
acter. 

"  Now  Christ,  as  reported  in  the  New  Testa- 
ment, has  not  only  marked  this  difference  more 
strongly  than  any  preceding  writer,  but  has 
proved,  in  contradiction  to  first  impressions,  to 
popular  opinion,  to  the  encomiums  of  orators 
and  poets,  and  even  to  the  suffrages  of  histori- 
ans and  moralists,  that  the  latter  character  pos- 
sesses the  most  of  true  worth. 

"  It  was  his  love  of  the  same  character 
which  our  Savior  displayed  in  his  repeated 
correction  of  the  ambition  of  his  disciples  ; 
his  frequent  admonitions,  that  greatness  with 
them  was  to  consist  in  humility  ;  his  censure 
of  that  love  of  distinction,  and  greediness  of 
superiority,  which  the  chief  persons  amongst 
his  countrymen  were  wont,  on  all  occasions, 
great  and  little,  to  betray.  {  They/  (the  scribes 
and  Pharisees),  says  he,  '  love  the  uppermost 
rooms  at  feasts,  and  the  chief  seats  in  the  syn- 
agogues, and  greetings  in  the  markets,  and 
to  be  called  of  men,  Rabbi,  Rabbi.  But  be 
not  ye  called  Rabbi,  for  one  is  your  Master, 
17 


258  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

even  Christ,  and  all  ye  are  brethren ;  and  call 
no  man  your  father  upon  the  earth,  for  one  is 
your  Father,  which  is  in  heaven  ;  neither  be  ye 
called  masters,  for  one  is  your  Master,  even 
Christ ;  but  he  that  is  greatest  among  you, 
shall  be  your  servant ;  and  whosoever  shall  ex- 
alt himself,  shall  be  abased  ;  and  he  that  shall 
humble  himself,  shall  be  exalted. '" 

All  this  displays  an  originality,  as  well  as  a 
wisdom,  quite  beyond  the  invention  of  such 
men  as  the  evangelists.  But  let  us  look  at 
other  proofs  of  a  similar  kind.  Matthew  attri- 
butes the  following  words  to  Christ : 

"  4  Woe  unto  you,  scribes  and  Pharisees, 
hypocrites  !  for  ye  make  clean  the  outside  of 
the  cup  and  of  the  platter,  but  within  they  are 
full  of  extortion  and  excess. — Ye  are  like  unto 
whited  sepulchres,  which  indeed  appear  beau- 
tiful outward,  but  are  within  full  of  dead  men's 
bones,  and  of  all  uncleanness  ;  even  so  ye  also 
outwardly  appear  righteous  unto  men,  but  with- 
in ye  are  full  of  hypocrisy  and  iniquity.'  " 

"  '  Out  of  the  heart  proceed  evil  thoughts, 
murders,'  Sec. — c  These  are  the  things  which 
defile  a  man.'  " — Matthew  xv.  19. 

Now,  most  moralists  fix  upon  the  external 


parley's  farewell.  259 

conduct  of  men  as  the  thing  to  be  regulated  : 
they  very  seldom  go  beyond  this.  But  Christ 
goes  to  the  very  origin  of  our  actions.  He  seeks 
to  make  the  fountain  pure,  for  his  wisdom  discov- 
ered this  to  be  the  only  way  to  make  the  streams 
pure.  He  saw  that  the  best  defence  against 
vice  was  to  exclude  evil  thoughts  ;  that  the 
surest,  nay,  the  only  way  to  promote  virtue  was 
to  make  the  heart  virtuous.  Nothing  can  bet- 
ter prove  his  superior  sagacity  and  his  perfect 
knowledge  of  human  nature,  than  such  preach- 
ing as  this.  If  the  evangelists  were  weaving  a 
fiction,  how  could  they  conceive  and  represent 
a  character  in  whom  such  greatness  of  thought 
appeared?  Is  not  this  incredible?  Would  it 
not  be  as  difficult  to  believe,  as  any  miracle, 
that  ignorant  and  common  men  could  do  this? 

Again,  let  us  consider  the  rule  of  conduct 
prescribed  by  our  Savior  toward  our  fellow- 
men. 

"  '  Then  one  of  them,  which  was  a  lawyer, 
asked  him  a  question,  tempting  him,  and  saying, 
Master,  which  is  the  great  commandment  in  the 
law?  Jesus  said  unto  him,  Thou  shalt  love 
the  Lord  thy  God  with  all  thy  heart,  and  with 
all  thy  soul,  and  with  all  thy  mind  ;   this  is  the 


260  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

first  and  great  commandment.  And  the  second 
is  like  unto  it,  Thou  shalt  love  thy  neighbor  as 
thyself.  On  these  two  commandments  hang  all 
the  law  and  the  prophets/ — Matt.  xxii.  35 — 40. 

"  The  second  precept  occurs  in  Saint  Mat- 
thew (xix.  16.)  on  another  occasion  similar  to 
this  ;  and  both  of  them  on  a  third  similar  occa- 
sion, in  Luke  (x.  27.)  In  these  two  latter  in- 
stances, the  question  proposed  was,  '  What 
shall  I  do  to  inherit  eternal  life?'  " 

This  sentiment  of  Christ  appears  to  have 
been  established  by  his  followers.  Saint  Paul 
says  : 

"  '  If  there  be  any  other  commandment,  it  is 
briefly  comprehended  in  this  saying,  Thou  shalt 
love  thy  neighbor  as  thyself;'  and  again,  '  For 
all  the  law  is  fulfilled  in  one  word,  even  in  this, 
thou  shalt  love  thy  neighbor  as  thyself.' 

"  Saint  John,  in  like  manner,  says,  '  This 
commandment  have  we  from  him,  that  he  who 
loveth  God  love  his  brother  also.' 

"  Saint  Peter  says  :  c  Seeing  that  ye  have 
purified  your  souls  in  obeying  the  truth, 
through  the  Spirit,  unto  unfeigned  love  of  the 
brethren,  see  that  ye  love  one  another  with  a 
pure  heart  fervently.' 


parley's  farewell.  261 

"  And  it  is  so  well  known  as  to  require  no 
citations  to  verify  it,  that  this  love,  or  charity, 
or,  in  other  words,  regard  to  the  welfare  of 
others,  runs  in  various  forms  through  all  the 
preceptive  parts  of  the  apostolic  writings.  It 
is  the  theme  of  all  their  exhortations,  that  with 
which  their  morality  begins  and  ends,  from 
which  all  their  details  and  enumerations  set  out, 
and  into  which  they  return. 

"  And  that  this  temper,  for  some  time  at 
least,  descended  in  its  purity  to  succeeding 
Christians,  is  attested  by  one  of  the  earliest 
and  best  of  the  remaining  writings  of  the  apos- 
tolical fathers,  the  epistle  of  the  Roman  Clem- 
ent. The  meekness  of  the  Christian  character 
reigns  throughout  the  whole  of  that  excellent 
piece. 

"  This  sacred  principle,  this  earnest  recom- 
mendation of  forbearance,  lenity  and  forgive- 
ness, mixes  with  all  the  writings  of  that  age. 
There  are  more  quotations  in  the  apostolical 
fathers,  of  texts  which  relate  to  these  points, 
than  of  any  other.  Christ's  sayings  had  struck 
them.  '  Not  rendering,'  said  Polycarp,  the 
disciple  of  John,  '  evil  for  evil,  or  railing 
for  railing,  or  striking  for  striking,  or   curs- 


262  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

ing  for  cursing/  Again,  speaking  of  some 
whose  behavior  had  given  great  offence,  '  Be 
ye  moderate/  says  he,  c  on  this  occasion,  and 
look  not  upon  such  as  enemies,  but  call 
them  back  as  suffering  and  erring  members, 
that  ye  save  your  whole  body.' 

"  c  Be  ye  mild  at  their  anger,'  saith  Ignatius, 
the  companion  of  Polycarp,  '  humble  at  their 
boastings,  to  their  blasphemies  return  your 
prayers,  to  their  error  your  firmness  in  the  faith  ; 
when  they  are  cruel,  be  ye  gentle  ;  not  endeav- 
oring to  imitate  their  ways,  let  us  be  their 
brethren  in  all  kindness  and  moderation  ;  but 
let  us  be  followers  of  the  Lord;  for  who  was 
ever  more  unjustly  used,  more  destitute,  more 
despised?' 

"  Another  quality,  by  which  the  morality  of 
the  Gospel  is  distinguished,  is  the  exclusion  of 
regard  to  fame  and  reputation. 

"  '  Take  heed  that  ye  do  not  your  alms  be- 
fore men,  to  be  seen  of  them,  otherwise  ye  have 
no  reward  of  your  Father  which  is  in  heaven.' 

"  '  When  thou  prayest,  enter  into  thy  closet, 
and  when  thou  hast  shut  the  door,  pray  to  thy 
Father  which  is  in  secret  ;  and  thy  Father, 
which  seeth  in  secret,  shall  reward  thee  openly.' 


parley's  farewell.  263 

"And  the  rule,  by  similarity  of  reasoning,  is 
extended  to  all  other  virtues. 

"  Next  to  what  our  Savior  taught,  may  be 
considered  the  manner  of  his  teaching  :  which 
was  extremely  peculiar,  yet,  I  think,  precisely 
adapted  to  the  peculiarity  of  his  character  and 
situation.  His  lessons  did  not  consist  of  dis- 
quisitions ;  of  any  thing  like  moral  essays,  or 
like  sermons,  or  like  set  treatises  upon  the  sev- 
eral points  which  he  mentioned.  When  he  de- 
livered a  precept,  it  was  seldom  that  he  added 
any  proof  or  argument ;  still  more  seldom  that 
he  accompanied  it  with,  what  all  precepts  re- 
quire, limitations  and  distinctions.  His  in- 
structions were  conceived  in  short,  emphatic, 
sententious  rules,  in  occasional  reflections,  or 
in  round  maxims. 

"  I  do  not  think  that  this  was  a  natural,  or 
would  have  been  a  proper  method  for  a  phi 
losopher  or  a  moralist ;  or  that  it  is  a  method 
which  can  be  successfully  imitated  by  us.  But 
I  contend  that  it  was  suitable  to  the  character 
which  Christ  assumed,  and  to  the  situation  in 
which,  as  a  teacher,  he  was  placed.  He  pro- 
duced himself  as  a  messenger  from  God.  He 
put  the  truth  of  what  he  taught  upon  authority. 


264  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

In  the  choice,  therefore,  of  his  mode  of  teach- 
ing, the  purpose  by  him  to  be  consulted  was 
impression:  because  conviction,  which  forms 
the  principal  end  of  our  discourses,  was  to  arise 
in  the  minds  of  his  followers  from  a  different 
source,  from  their  respect  to  his  person  and 
authority.  Now,  for  the  purpose  of  impres- 
sion singly  and  exclusively,  I  know  nothing 
which  would  have  so  great  force  as  strong  and 
weighty  maxims,  frequently  urged,  and  often 
brought  back  to  the  thoughts  of  the  hearers. 
I  know  nothing  that  could  in  this  view  be  said 
better  than  '  Do  unto  others  as  ye  would  that 
others  should  do  unto  you.'  '  The  first  and 
great  commandment  is,  Thou  shalt  love  the 
Lord  thy  God  ;  and  the  second  is  like  unto  it, 
Thou  shalt  love  thy  neighbor  as  thyself/ 

"  The  parables  of  the  New  Testament  are, 
many  of  them,  such  as  would  have  done  honor 
to  any  book  in  the  world  ;  I  do  not  mean  in 
style  and  diction,  but  in  the  choice  of  the  sub- 
jects, in  the  structure  of  the  narratives,  in  the 
aptness,  propriety  and  force  of  the  circum- 
stances woven  into  them  ;  and  in  some,  as  that 
of  the  good  Samaritan,  the  prodigal  son,  the 
Pharisee  and  the  publican,  in  a  union  of  pathos 


parley's  farewell.  265 

and  simplicity,  which,  in  the  best  productions 
of  human  genius,  is  the  fruit  only  of  a  much 
exercised  and  well  cultivated  judgment. 

"  The  Lord's  prayer,  for  a  succession  of 
solemn  thoughts,  for  fixing  the  attention  upon  a 
few  great  points,  for  suitableness  to  every  con- 
dition, for  sufficiency,  for  conciseness  without 
obscurity,  for  the  weight  and  real  importance 
of  its  petitions,  is  without  an  equal  or  a  rival. V 

Now  let  us  ask,  whence  did  these  things 
come  ?  Did  the  evangelists  invent  them  '] 
Could  such  men  surpass  all  ages  before  and 
after,  in  the  delineation  of  greatness  of  charac- 
ter, in  sublimity  of  moral  conception,  in  ex- 
cellence of  composition?  To  suppose  this  is 
to  suppose  something  more  than  a  miracle,  for 
it  involves  the  idea  that  impostors  did  what  was 
beyond  their  capacity,  and  acted  in  contradic- 
tion to  all  the  motives  which  can  be  supposed 
to  influence  such  persons. 

The  only  conclusion  to  which  a  sound  judg- 
ment can  possibly  come  is,  that  such  a  being 
as  Christ  appeared,  that  the  evangelists  saw 
and  heard  him,  and  that  they  faithfully  reported 
what  they  saw  and  heard.  Considering  this 
as  clearly  proved,  let  us  now  consider  a  little 
more  attentively  the  character  of  Christ. 


266  REVEALED    RELIGION. 


Chapter  XIV. 

The  purity  of  Chris? 's  character. 

The  character  of  Jesus  Christ  is  without 
a  blot.  As  represented  by  his  friends  and 
enemies,  he  is  never  charged  with  any  vice. 
"Not  a  reflection  upon  his  moral  character, 
not  an  imputation  or  suspicion  of  any  offence 
against  perfect  purity,  appears  for  five  hundred 
years  after  his  birth.  This  faultlessness  is 
more  peculiar  than  we  are  apt  to  imagine. 
Some  stain  pollutes  the  morals  or  the  morality 
of  almost  every  other  teacher,  and  of  every 
other  lawgiver.  Zeno  the  stoic,  and  Diogenes 
the  cynic,  fell  into  the  foulest  impurities  ;  of 
which  also  Socrates  himself  was  more  than  sus- 
pected. Solon  forbade  unnatural  crimes  to 
slaves  ;  Lycurgus  tolerated  theft  as  a  part  of 
education.  Aristotle  maintained  the  general 
right  of  making  war  upon  barbarians.  The 
elder  Cato  was  remarkable  for  the  ill  usage  of 
his  slaves.  One  loose  principle  is  found  in  al- 
most all  the  Pagan  moralists  ;  and  is  distinctly 


parley's  farewell.  267 

perceived  in  the  writings  of  Plato,  Xenophon, 
Cicero,  Seneca,  Epictetus  ;  and  that  is,  the 
allowing,  and  even  the  recommending  to  their 
disciples,  a  compliance  with  the  religion,  and 
with  the  religious  rites,  of  every  country  into 
which  they  came.  In  speaking  of  the  founders 
of  new  institutions,  we  cannot  forget  Maho- 
met. His  licentious  transgressions  of  his  own 
licentious  rules  ;  his  abuse  of  the  character 
which  he  assumed,  and  of  the  power  which  he 
had  acquired,  for  the  purpose  of  personal  and 
privileged  indulgence  ;  his  avowed  claim  of  a 
special  permission  from  heaven  of  unlimited 
sensuality,  is  known  to  every  reader,  as  it  is 
confessed  by  every  writer,  of  the  Moslem  story. 

"  In  the  histories  which  are  left  us  of  Jesus 
Christ,  although  very  short,  and  although  deal- 
ing in  narrative,  and  not  in  observation  or  pan- 
egyric, we  perceive,  beside  the  absence  of  every 
appearance  of  vice,  traces  of  devotion,  humili- 
ty, benignity,  mildness,  patience,  and  prudence. 

"  Thus  we  see  the  devoutness  of  his  mind, 
in  his  frequent  retirement  to  solitary  prayer  ;l 
in  his  habitual  giving  of  thanks  ;2  in  his  refer- 

1  Matt.  xiv.  23.  Luke  ix.  28.    Matt.  xxvi.  36.     2  Matt.  xi.  25. 
Mark  viii.  6.  John  vi.  23.  Luke  xxii.  17. 


268  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

ence  of  the  beauties  and  operations  of  nature  to 
the  bounty  of  Providence;1  in  his  earnest  ad- 
dresses to  his  Father,  more  particularly  that 
short  but  solemn  one  before  the  raising  of  Laz- 
arus from  the  dead  ;2  and  in  the  deep  piety  of 
his  behavior  in  the  garden,  on  the  last  eve- 
ning of  his  life  :3  his  humility,  in  his  constant 
reproof  of  contentions  for  superiority  :4  the  be- 
nignity and  affectionateness  of  his  temper,  in 
his  kindness  to  children  ;5  in  the  tears  which  he 
shed  over  his  falling  country,6  and  upon  the 
death  of  his  friend  ;7  in  his  noticing  of  the  wid- 
ow's mite  ;8  in  his  parables  of  the  good  Sama- 
ritan, of  the  ungrateful  servant,  and  of  the  Phar- 
isee and  publican,  of  which  parables  no  one 
but  a  man  of  humanity  could  have  been  the 
author  :  the  mildness  and  lenity  of  his  charac- 
ter as  discovered  in  his  rebuke  of  the  forward 
zeal  of  his  disciples  at  the  Samaritan  village  ;9 
in  his  expostulation  with  Pilate;10  in  his  prayer 
for  his  enemies  at  the  moment  of  his  suffering,11 
which,  though  it  has  been  since  very  properly 
and  frequently  imitated,  was  then,  I  apprehend, 
altogether  new. 

1Matt.  vi.  26—28.  2John  xi.  41.  sMatt.  xxvi.  36—47. 
*Mark  ix.  33.  5Mark  x.  16.  6  Luke  xix.  41.  rJohn  xi.  35. 
8Mark  xii.  42.     9Luke  ix.  55.     10  John  xix.  11.     nLuke  xxiii.  34. 


parley's  farewell.  269 

"  His  prudence  is  discerned,  where  prudence 
is  most  wanted,  in  his  conduct  on  trying  occa- 
sions, and  in  answers  to  artful  questions.  Of 
these,  the  following  are  examples  : — His  with- 
drawing, in  various  instances,  from  the  first 
symptoms  of  tumult,1  and  with  the  express  care, 
as  appears  from  Saint  Matthew,2  of  carrying  on 
his  ministry  in  quietness;  his  declining  every 
species  of  interference  with  the  civil  affairs  of 
the  country,  which  disposition  is  manifested  by 
his  behavior  in  the  case  of  the  woman  caught 
in  adultery,3  and  in  his  repulse  of  the  applica- 
tion which  was  made  to  him  to  interpose  his 
decision  about  a  disputed  inheritance  :4  his  ju- 
dicious, yet,  as  it  should  seem,  unprepared  an- 
swers, will  be  confessed  in  the  case  of  the  Ro- 
man tribute  ;5  in  the  difficulty  concerning  the 
interfering  relations  of  a  future  state,  as  pro- 
posed to  him  in  the  instance  of  a  woman  who 
had  married  seven  brethren  ;6  and,  more  espe- 
cially, in  his  reply  to  those  who  demanded 
from  him  an  explanation  of  the  authority  by 
which  he  acted,  which  reply  consisted  in  pro- 
lan, xiv.  22.  Luke  v.  15,  16.  John  v.  13.  ri.  15.  2Chap. 
xii.  19.  3John  viii.  1.  4Luke  xii.  14.  5Matt.  xxii.  19.  6Matt. 
xxii.  28. 


270  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

pounding  a  question  to  them,  situated  between 
the  very  difficulties  into  which  they  were  insid- 
iously endeavoring  to  draw  him.1 

"  Our  Savior's  lessons,  besides  what  has 
already  been  remarked  in  them,  touch,  and  that 
oftentimes  by  very  affecting  representations, 
upon  some  of  the  most  interesting  topics  of  hu- 
man duty  and  of  human  meditation  :  upon  the 
principles  by  which  the  decisions  of  the  last 
day  will  be  regulated  ;2  upon  the  superior,  or 
rather  the  supreme,  importance  of  religion  ;3 
upon  penitence,  by  the  most  pressing  calls  and 
the  most  encouraging  invitations  ;4  upon  self- 
denial,3  watchfulness,6  placability,7  confidence  in 
God,  the  value  of  spiritual,  that  is,  of  mental 
worship,9  the  necessity  of  moral  obedience,  and 
the  directing  of  that  obedience  to  the  spirit  and 
principle  of  the  law,  instead  of  seeking  for  eva- 
sions in  a  technical  construction  of  its  terms.10 

"If  we  extend  our  argument  to  other  parts 
of    the    New    Testament,    we    may    offer,    as 


iMatt.  xxL  23,  &c.  2Matt.  xxv.  31,  fee.  sMark  viii.  35. 
Matt.  vi.  31—33.  Luke  xii.  4,  5.  16—21.  4Luke  xv.  5Matt.  v. 
29.  6Mark  xiii.  37.  Matt.  xxiv.  42.— xxv.  13.  .  7Luke  xvii.  4. 
Matt,    xviii.    33.   &c.     8Matt.    vi.   25—30.      9John   iv.   23,  24. 

10Matt.  v.  21. 


parley's   farewell.  271 

amongst  tne  best  and  shortest  rules  of  life,  or, 
which  is  the  same  thing,  descriptions  of  virtue, 
that  have  ever  been  delivered,  the  following 
passages  : 

"  '  Pure  religion,  and  undefiled,  before  God 
and  the  Father,  is  this  ;  to  visit  the  fatherless 
and  widows  in  their  affliction,  and  to  keep  him- 
self unspotted  from  the  world.'1 

"  '  Now  the  end  of  the  commandment  is, 
charity,  out  of  a  pure  heart  and  a  good  con- 
science, and  faith  unfeigned.'2 

"  '  For  the  grace  of  God,  that  bringeth  salva- 
tion, hath  appeared  to  all  men,  teaching  us, 
that,  denying  ungodliness  and  worldly  lusts,  we 
should  live  soberly,  righteously,  and  godly,  in 
this  present  world.'3 

"  Enumerations  of  virtues  and  vices,  and 
those  sufficiently  accurate,  and  unquestionably 
just,  are  given  by  Saint  Paul  to  his  converts 
in  three  several  epistles.4 

"  The  relative  duties  of  husbands  and  wives, 
of  parents  and  children,  of  masters  and  ser- 
vants, of  Christian  teachers  and  their  flocks,  of 
governors  and  their  subjects,  are  set  forth  by 

1  James  i.  27.     21  Tim.  i.  5.     3Tit.  ii.  11,  12.     4Gal.  v.  19. 
Col.  iii.  12.     1  Cor.  xiii.    . 


272  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

the  same  writer,1  not  indeed  with  the  copious- 
ness, the  detail,  or  the  distinctness,  of  a  moral- 
ist, who  should,  in  these  days,  sit  down  to 
write  chapters  upon  the  subject,  but  with  the 
leading  rules  and  principles  in  each ;  and, 
above  all,  with  truth,  and  with  authority. 

"  Lastly,  the  whole  volume  of  the  New  Tes- 
tament is  replete  with  piety;  with,  what  were 
almost  unknown  to  heathen  moralists,  devotion- 
al virtues,  the  most  profound  veneration  of  the 
Deity,  an  habitual  sense  of  his  bounty  and  pro- 
tection, a  firm  confidence  in  the  final  result  of 
his  counsels  and  dispensations,  a  disposition  to 
resort,  upon  all  occasions,  to  his  mercy,  for  the 
supply  of  human  wants,  for  assistance  in  dan- 
ger, for  relief  from  pain,  for  the  pardon  of  sin." 

Now,  let  any  man  reflect  upon  these  things 
well ;  let  him  consider  that  at  the  time  Christ 
preached,  such  doctrines  as  his  were  unknown  ; 
such  a  character  as  his  had  never  appeared  ; 
and  since  his  time,  amid  all  the  inventions  and 
improvements  of  more  enlightened  ages,  nothing 
equal  to  his  character  for  purity  and  piety,  no- 
thing equal  to  his  morality,  has  appeared  among 
mankind.     And  was  this  individual  an  impos- 

^ph.  v.  33.  vi.  1,  5.  2  Cor.  vi.  6,  7.  Rom.  xiii. 


parley's   farewell.  273 

tor?     Was  he  a  mere  enthusiast?      Let  com- 
mon sense  give  the  answer. 


Chapter   XV. 

Miracles  of  Christ.     Tlie  rapid  extension  of  his  religion.    Inferences. 

It  has  been  proved  that  the  New  Testament 
histories  of  Christ  are  genuine  and  authentic  ; 
that  they  are  moreover  faithful  histories  of  what 
the  evangelists  really  saw,  and  are  therefore 
true.  No  reasonable  doubt  can  therefore  exist 
that  Christ  really  performed  the  miracles  at- 
tributed to  him. 

These  were  performed  in  the  presence  of 
hundreds  of  witnesses.  There  could  have  been 
no  trick,  no  sleight  of  hand,  no  juggling. 
These  things  were  seen  by  the  apostles. 
They  believed  them.  They  proved  this  by 
going  forth  to  the  world  to  proclaim  Christ  and 
his  doctrines.  They  encountered  every  obsta- 
cle, suffered  every  privation  and  danger,  and 
some  of  them  died,  to  attest  the  sincerity  of 
their  convictions,  and  the  truth  of  Christ's 
miracles.  These  men  could  not  have  been  de- 
ceived. 

18 


274  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

The  apostles  set  forth  the  miracles  of  Christ, 
immediately  after  his  death,  at  Jerusalem, 
where,  if  they  were  fictitious,  they  must  have 
been  met  by  contradiction,  and  overwhelmed 
with  confusion.  They  also  preached  the  resur- 
rection of  Christ.  If  this  too  were  a  falsehood, 
why  did  the  Jews  not  produce  the  body  of 
Christ,  and  thus  put  to  shame  the  propa- 
gators of  what  they  contended  to  be  a  false- 
hood? Their  failing  to  do  this,  is  conclu- 
sive against  them.  The  government  officers, 
who  superintended  Christ's  execution,  had 
charge  of  his  body,  and  if  it  did  not  disap- 
pear as  related,  they  must  have  had  it  in  their 
keeping,  and  could  easily  have  brought  it  for- 
ward to  refute  the  story  of  his  resurrection. 
But  they  did  not  do  this,  and  no  reason  can  be 
assigned  for  it,  but  that  of  Christ's  resurrection, 
which  put  his  body  beyond  their  power.  And 
consider  that  at  Jerusalem,  where  the  best  pos- 
sible means  existed  for  testing  the  truth  of 
what  the  apostles  asserted,  Christianity  com- 
menced, and  was  there  first  propagated,  and 
there  had  the  most  sudden  and  pervading  suc- 
cess.    Let  us  see  how  it  began  and  progressed. 

"  The  first  assembly  which  we  meet  with  of 


parley's  farewell.  275 

Christ's  disciples,  and  that  a  few  days  after  his 
removal  from  the  world,  consisted  of '  one  hun- 
dred and  twenty.'  About  a  week  after  this, 
'three  thousand  were  added  in  one  day;'  and 
the  number  of  Christians  publicly  baptized,  and 
publicly  associating  together,  was  very  soon 
increased  to  '  five  thousand.'  '  Multitudes,  both 
of  men  and  women,  continued  to  be  added  ;' 
'  disciples  multiplied  greatly,'  and  '  many  of  the 
Jewish  priesthood,  as  well  as  others,  became 
obedient  to  the  faith  ;'  and  this  within  a  space 
of  less  than  two  years  from  the  commencement 
of  the  institution. 

"  By  reason  of  a  persecution  raised  against 
the  church  at  Jerusalem,  the  converts  were 
driven  from  that  city,  and  dispersed  throughout 
the  regions  of  Judea  and  Samaria.  Wherever 
they  came,  they  brought  their  religion  with 
them  ;  for  our  historian  informs  us  that  '  they 
that  were  scattered  abroad,  went  every  where 
preaching  the  word.' 

"Hitherto  the  preaching  of  the  Gospel  had 
been  confined  to  Jews,  to  Jewish  proselytes,  and 
to  Samaritans.  And  I  cannot  forbear  from 
setting  down  in  this  place  an  observation  of 
Mr.  Bryant,  which  appears  to  me  to  be  perfectly 


276  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

well  founded  : — c  The  Jews  still  remain  ;  but 
how  seldom  is  it  that  we  can  make  a  single  pros- 
elyte !  There  is  reason  to  think,  that  there 
were  more  converted  by  the  apostles  in  one  day, 
than  have  since  been  won  over  in  the  last  thou- 
sand years/ 

"  It  was  not  yet  known  to  the  apostles  that 
they  were  at  liberty  to  propose  the  religion  to 
mankind  at  large.  That  '  mystery,'  as  Saint 
Paul  calls  it,  and  as  it  then  was,  was  revealed 
to  Peter  by  an  especial  miracle.  It  appears  to 
have  been  about  seven  years  after  Christ's  as- 
cension, that  the  Gospel  was  preached  to  the 
Gentiles  of  Cesarea.  A  year  after  this,  a  great 
multitude  of  Gentiles  were  converted  at  Anti- 
och  in  Syria.  The  expressions  employed  by 
the  historian  are  these  : — '  A  great  number  be- 
lieved, and  turned  to  the  Lord  ;'  '  much  people 
was  added  unto  the  Lord  ;'  '  the  apostles  Bar- 
nabas and  Paul  taught  much  people.'  Upon 
Herod's  death,  which  happened  in  the  next 
year,  it  is  observed,  that  'the  word  of  God 
grew  and  multiplied.'  Three  years  from  this 
time,  upon  the  preaching  of  Paul  at  Iconium, 
the  metropolis  of  Lycaonia,  c  a  great  multitude 
both  of  Jews  and  Greeks  believed ;'  and  after- 


parley's  farewell.  277 

ward,  in  the  course  of  this  very  progress,  he  is 
represented  as  '  making  man}'  disciples'  at 
Derbe,  a   principal   city   in   the  same  district. 

"  Three  years  after  this,  which  brings  us  to 
sixteen  after  the  ascension,  the  apostles  wrote 
a  public  letter  from  Jerusalem  to  the  Gentile 
converts  in  Antioch,  Syria,  and  Cilicia,  with 
which  letter  Paul  travelled  through  these  coun- 
tries, and  found  the  churches  '  established  in 
the  faith,  and  increasing  in  number  daily.' 
From  Asia,  the  apostle  proceeded  into  Greece, 
where,  soon  after  his  arrival  in  Macedonia,  we 
find  him  at  Thessalonica  ;  in  which  city,  '  some 
of  the  Jews  believed,  and  of  the  devout  Greeks 
a  great  multitude.'  We  meet  also  here  with  an 
accidental  hint  of  the  general  progress  of  the 
Christian  mission,  in  the  exclamation  of  the  tu- 
multuous Jews  of  Thessalonica,  'that  they,  who 
had  turned  the  world  upside  down,  were  come 
thither  also.'  At  Berea,  the  next  city  at  which 
Paul  arrives,  the  historian,  who  was  present, 
informs  us  that  '  many  of  the  Jews  believed.' 

"  The  next  year  and  a  half  of  Saint  Paul's 
ministry  was  spent  at  Corinth.  Of  his  success 
in  that  city,  we  receive  the  following  intima- 
tions :  '  that  many  of  the  Corinthians  believed 


278  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

and  were  baptized  ;'  and  '  that  it  was  revealed 
to  the  apostle  by  Christ,  that  he  had  much  peo- 
ple in  that  city/     Within  less  than  a  year  after 

his  departure  from  Corinth,  and  twenty-five 
years  after  the  ascension,  Saint  Paul  fixed  his 
station  at  Ephesus,"  for  the  space  of  two  years 
and  something  more.  The  effect  of  his  minis- 
try in  that  city  and  neighborhood  drew  from  the 
historian  a  reflection,  how  '  mightily  grew  the 
word  of  God  and  prevailed/  And  at  the  con- 
clusion of  this  period,  we  find  Demetrius  at  the 
head  of  a  party,  who  were  alarmed  by  the  pro- 
gress of  the  religion,  complaining,  that c  not  only 
at  Ephesus,  but  also  throughout  all  Asia  (i.  e. 
the  province  of  Lydia,  and  the  country  ad- 
joining to  Ephesus),  this  Paul  hath  persuaded 
and  turned  away  much  people/  Beside  these 
accounts,  there  occurs,  incidentally,  mention 
of  converts  at  Rome,  Alexandria,  Athens, 
Cyprus,  Cyrene,  Macedonia,  Philippi. 

"  This  is  the  third  period  in  the  propagation 
of  Christianity,  setting  off  in  the  seventh  year 
after  the  ascension,  and  ending  at  the  twenty- 
eighth.  Now  lay  these  three  periods  together, 
and  observe  how  the  progress  of  the  religion  by 
these  accounts  is  represented.     The  institution, 


parley's   farewell.  279 

which  properly  began  only  after  its  author's  re- 
moval from  the  world,  before  the  end  of  thirty 
years  had  spread  itself  through  Judea,  Galilee, 
and  Samaria,  almost  all  the  numerous  districts 
of  the  Lesser  Asia,  through  Greece,  and  the 
islands  of  the  iEgean  Sea,  the  sea-coast  of  Af- 
rica, and  had  extended  itself  to  Rome,  and 
into  Italy.  At  Antioch  in  Syria,  at  Joppa, 
Ephesus,  Corinth,  Thessalonica,  Berea,  Iconi- 
um,  Derbe,  Antioch  in  Pisidia,  at  Lydda,  Sa- 
roii,  the  number  of  converts  is  intimated  by  the 
expressions,  '  a  great  number/  '  great  multi- 
tude,' '  much  people.'  Converts  are  men- 
tioned, without  any  designation  of  their  num- 
ber, at  Tyre,  Cesarea,  Troas,  Athens,  Philippi, 
Lystra,  Damascus.  During  all  this  time,  Je- 
rusalem continued  not  only  the  centre  of  the 
mission,  but  a  principal  seat  of  the  religion." 

We  need  not  pursue  this  subject,  for  we 
know  that  Christianity  continued  to  increase, 
till  in  these  countries  it  overturned  the  pagan 
idolatry  and  became  the  religion  of  the  Roman 
court.  But  let  us  consider  the  amazing  ex- 
tent of  its  increase,  in  the  face  of  opposition  and 
persecution,  within  30  years  ;  and  that,  too, 
in  the  very  place  of  its  origin,  where  the  best 


280  REVEALED     RELIGION. 

means  existed  for  testing  the  truth  of  the  state- 
ments upon  which  it  rested.  The  subject  was 
of  course  discussed  ;  the  learning,  and  power, 
and  talent,  were  on  the  side  of  opposition ; 
yet  Christianity  prevailed.1  Is  it  possible  to 
believe  that  it  was  established  by  falsehood,  by 
trick,  by  fanaticism  ?  Could  these  produce 
such  amazing  results?  Is  it  not  more  philo- 
sophic, more  consonant  to  reason  and  common 
sense,  to  see  in  all  this  the  fruits  of  the  mira- 
cles,  preaching,    death    and     resurrection    of 

!It  may  be  said  that  the  prevalence  of  a  religion  does  not  neces- 
sarily prove  its  truth,  for  Mahometanism  prevailed,  though  it  is 
an  imposition.  But  Mahometanism  was  not  founded  upon  mir- 
acles. Mahomet  himself  laid  little  stress  upon  real  miracles;  and 
it  is  certain  that  his  followers  were  not  Avon  over  by  any  such 
belief.  Mahomet  was  rich,  and  conducted  his  schemes  with 
all  the  art  of  a  politician.  The  Arabians  were  already  believers 
in  the  Bible,  and  Mahomet  took  full  advantage  of  this  belief. 
He  made  all  his  followers  soldiers,  and  his  early  proselytes  were 
rewarded  with  riches,  honor  and  power.  He  also  addressed 
the  imagination  in  a  manner  to  captivate  the  fancy  of  a  luxu- 
rious people.  While  he  threatened  the  most  dreadful  torments 
to  unbelievers,  he  promised  a  paradise  of  voluptuous  bliss  to 
his  faithful  followers,  But  his  highest  heaven  he  assigned  to 
them  that  fought  his  battles.  In  this  way,  and  by  the  aid  of 
great  abilities,  he  founded  his  religion,  which,  however,  has  never 
prevailed  but  with  ignorant  nations.  Christianity,  on  the  con- 
trary, has  prevailed  in  the  most  civilized  countries,  and  flourished 
most  in  the  most  intelligent  ages.  Its  history,  therefore,  is  as 
different  from  Mahometanism  as  its  origin. 


parley's  farewell.  2S1 

Christ,  established  by  the  testimony  of  thou- 
sands of  witnesses  to  his  ministry,  and  all  aided 
by  the  Spirit  of  God? 


Chapter  XVI. 

Prophecies  concerning  Christ. 


In  the  52d  and  53d  chapters  of  Isaiah,  are 
the  following  passages  : 

"  Behold,  my  servant  shall  deal  prudently, 
he  shall  be  exalted  and  extolled,  and  be  very 
high. 

"  As  many  as  were  astonished  at  thee  ;  (his 
visage  was  so  marred  more  than  any  man,  and 
his  form  more  than  the  sons  of  men  :) 

"  So  shall  he  sprinkle  many  nations  ;  the 
kings  shall  shut  their  mouths  at  him  :  for  that 
which  had  not  been  told  them  shall  they  see  ; 
and  that  which  they  had  not  heard  shall  they 
consider. 

"  Who  hath  believed  our  report?  and  to 
whom  is  the  arm  of  the  Lord  revealed? 

"  For  he  shall  grow  up  before  us  as  a  tender 
plant,  and  as  a  root  out  of  a  dry  ground :  he 


282  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

hath  no  form  nor  comeliness  ;  and  when  we 
shall  see  him,  there  is  no  beauty  that  we  should 
desire  him. 

"He  is  despised  and  rejected  of  men;  a 
man  of  sorrows,  and  acquainted  with  grief:  and 
we  hid  as  it  were  our  faces  from  him  ;  he  was 
despised,  and  we  esteemed  him  not. 

"  Surely  he  hath  borne  our  griefs,  and  car- 
ried our  sorrows  :  yet  we  did  esteem  him  strick- 
en, smitten  of  God,  and  afflicted. 

"  But  he  was  wounded  for  our  transgres- 
sions, he  was  bruised  for  our  iniquities  ;  the 
chastisement  of  our  peace  was  upon  him  ;  and 
with  his  stripes  we  are  healed. 

"  All  we  like  sheep  have  gone  astray  ;  we 
have  turned  every  one  to  his  own  way  ;  and 
the  Lord  hath  laid  on  him  the  iniquity  of  us  all. 

"  He  was  oppressed,  and  he  was  afflicted,  yet 
he  opened  not  his  month  :  he  is  brought  as  a  lamb 
to  the  slaughter,  and  as  a  sheep  before  her 
shearers  is  dumb,  so  he  opened  not  his  mouth. 

"  He  was  taken  from  prison  and  from  judg- 
ment :  and  who  shall  declare  his  generation? 
for  he  was  cut  off  out  of  the  land  of  the  living  : 
for  the  transgression  of  my  people  was  he 
stricken. 


parley's  farewell.  283 

"  And  he  made  his  grave  with  the  wicked, 
and  with  the  rich  in  his  death  ;  because  he  had 
done  no  violence,  neither  was  any  deceit  in  his 
mouth. 

"  Yet  it  pleased  the  Lord  to  bruise  him  ;  he 
hath  put  him  to  grief:  when  thou  shalt  make 
his  soul  an  offering  for  sin,  he  shall  see  his 
seed,  he  shall  prolong  his  days,  and  the  pleas- 
ure of  the  Lord  shall  prosper  in  his  hand. 

"  He  shall  see  of  the  travail  of  his  soul,  and 
shall  be  satisfied  :  by  his  knowledge  shall  my 
righteous  servant  justify  many  ;  for  he  shall 
bear  their  iniquities. 

"  Therefore  will  I  divide  him  a  portion  with 
the  great,  and  he  shall  divide  the  spoil  with  the 
strong  ;  because  he  hath  poured  out  his  soul 
unto  death  :  and  he  was  numbered  with  the 
transgressors  ;  and  he  bare  the  sin  of  many, 
and  made  intercession  for  the  transgressors/' 

"  These  words  are  extant  in  a  book  purport- 
ing to  contain  the  predictions  of  a  writer  who 
lived  seven  centuries  before  the  Christian  era. 

"  That  material  part  of  every  argument  from 
prophecy,  namely,  that  the  words  alleged  were 
actually  spoken  or  written  before  the  fact  to 
which  they    are  applied  took  place,  or  could 


284  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

by  any  natural  means  be  foreseen,  is,  in  the 
present  instance,  incontestable.  The  record 
comes  out  of  the  custody  of  adversaries.  The 
Jews,  as  an  ancient  father  well  observed,  are 
our  librarians.  The  passage  is  in  their  copies, 
as  well  as  in  ours.  With  many  attempts  to  ex- 
plain it  away,  none  has  ever  been  made  by 
them  to  discredit  its  authenticity. 

"  The  application  of  the  prophecy  to  Christ 
and  the  Gospel  history  is  plain  and  appropriate. 
Here  is  no  double  sense  ;  no  figurative  lan- 
guage, but  what  is  sufficiently  intelligible  to 
every  reader  of  every  country. 

"  There  are  other  prophecies  of  the  Old 
Testament,  interpreted  by  Christians  to  relate 
to  the  Gospel  history,  which  are  deserving  both 
of  great  regard,  and  of  a  very  attentive  consid- 
eration. 

"  Another  argument  from  prophecy  is  found- 
ed upon  our  Lord's  predictions  concerning  the 
destruction  of  Jerusalem,  recorded  by  three 
out  of  the  four  evangelists. 

"  Luke  xxi.  5 — 25.  'And  as  some  spake 
of  the  temple,  how  it  was  adorned  with  goodly 
stones  and  gifts,  he  said,  As  for  these  things 
which  ye  behold,  the  days  will  come  in  which 


PARLEY'S    FAREWELL.  285 

there  shall  not  be  left  one  stone  upon  another, 
that  shall  not  be  thrown  down.  And  they 
asked  him,  saying,  Master,  but  when  shall  these 
things  be?  and  what  sign  will  there  be  when 
these  things  shall  come  to  pass?  And  he  said, 
Take  heed  that  ye  be  not  deceived,  for  many 
shall  come  in  my  name,  saying,  I  am  Christ ; 
and  the  time  draweth  near  :  go  ye  therefore 
not  after  them.  But  when  ye  shall  hear  of 
wars  and  commotions,  be  not  terrified :  for 
these  things  must  first  come  to  pass  ;  but  the 
end  is  not  by-and-by. 

"  '  Then  said  he  unto  them,  Nation  shall  rise 
against  nation,  and  kingdom  against  kingdom  ; 
and  great  earthquakes  shall  be  in  divers  places, 
,and  famines  and  pestilences  ;  and  fearful  sights, 
and  great  signs  shall  there  be  from  heaven. 
But  before  all  these,  they  shall  lay  their  hands 
on  you,  and  persecute  you,  delivering  you  up  to 
the  synagogues,  and  into  prisons,  being  brought 
before  kings  and  rulers  for  my  name's  sake. 
And  it  shall  turn  to  you  for  a  testimony.  Set- 
tle it  therefore  in  your  hearts,  not  to  meditate 
before  what  ye  shall  answer :  for  I  will  give 
you  a  mouth  and  wisdom,  which  all  your  ad- 
versaries shall  not  be  able  to  gainsay  nor  resist. 


286  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

And  ye  shall  be  betrayed,  both  by  parents,  and 
brethren,  and  kinsfolk,  and  friends  ;  and  some 
of  you  shall  they  cause  to  be  put  to  death. 
And  ye  shall  be  hated  of  all  men  for  my  name's 
sake.  But  there  shall  not  a  hair  of  your  head 
perish.     In  your  patience  possess  ye  your  souls. 

"  'And  when  ye  shall  see  Jerusalem  compassed 
with  armies,  then  know  that  the  desolation  there- 
of is  nigh.  Then  let  them  which  are  in  Judea 
flee  to  the  mountains  ;  and  let  them  which  are 
in  the  midst  of  it  depart  out ;  and  let  not  them 
that  are  in  the  countries  enter  thereinto.  For 
these  be  the  days  of  vengeance,  that  all  things 
which  are  written  may  be  fulfilled.  But  woe 
unto  them  that  are  with  child,  and  to  them  that 
give  suck,  in  those  days  :  for  there  shall  be 
great  distress  in  the  land,  and  wrath  upon  this 
people.  And  they  shall  fall  by  the  edge  of  the 
sword,  and  shall  be  led  away  captive  into  all 
nations  :  and  Jerusalem  shall  be  trodden  down 
of  the  Gentiles,  until  the  times  of  the  Gentiles 
be  fulfilled/ 

"  In  terms  nearly  similar,  this  discourse  is 
related  in  the  twenty-fourth  chapter  of  Mat- 
thew, and  the  thirteenth  of  Mark.  The  pros- 
pect of  the  same  evils  drew  from  our  Savior, 


parley's   farewell.  287 

on  another  occasion,  the  following  affecting  ex- 
pressions of  concern,  which  are  preserved  by 
Saint  Luke  (xix.  41 — 44.) :  c  And  when  he  was 
come  near,  he  beheld  the  city  and  wept  over  it, 
saying,  If  thou  hadst  known,  even  thou,  at 
least  in  this  thy  day,  the  things  which  belong 
unto  thy  peace  !  but  now  they  are  hid  from 
thine  eyes.  For  the  days  shall  come  upon 
thee,  that  thine  enemies  shall  cast  a  trench 
about  thee,  and  compass  thee  round,  and  keep 
thee  in  on  every  side,  and  shall  lay  thee  even 
with  the  ground,  and  thy  children  within  thee  ; 
and  they  shall  not  leave  in  thee  one  stone  upon 
another  ;  because  thou  knewest  not  the  time  of 
thy  visitation.' 

"  These  passages  are  direct  and  explicit  pre- 
dictions. References  to  the  same  event,  some 
plain,  some  parabolical,  or  otherwise  figura- 
tive, are  found  in  divers  other  discourses  of 
our  Lord. 

"  The  general  agreement  of  the  description 
with  the  event,  viz.  with  the  ruin  of  the  Jewish 
nation,  and  the  capture  of  Jerusalem  under  Ves- 
pasian, thirty-six  years  after  Christ's  death,  is 
most  evident ;  and  the  accordancy  in  various  ar- 
ticles of  detail  and  circumstances  has  been  shown 


288  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

by  many  learned  writers.  It  is  also  an  advan- 
tage to  the  inquiry,  and  to  the  argument  built 
upon  it,  that  we  have  received  a  copious  ac- 
count of  the  transaction  from  Josephus,  a  Jew- 
ish and  contemporary  historian,  whose  descrip- 
tion agrees  with  Christ's  prophecy.  This  part 
of  the  case  is  perfectly  free  from  doubt.  The 
only  question  which,  in  my  opinion,  can  be 
raised  upon  the  subject,  is  whether  the  prophe- 
cy was  really  delivered  before  the  event.  In 
regard  to  this  it  may  be  remarked,  that  the 
judgment  of  antiquity,  though  varying  in  the 
precise  year  of  the  publication  of  the  three  Gos- 
pels, concurs  in  assigning  them  a  date  prior  to 
the  destruction  of  Jerusalem." 

Who  that  reads  the  prophecies  of  Isaiah 
and  others  respecting  the  Messiah,  and  sees 
their  fulfilment  in  Jesus  Christ ;  who  that 
reads  his  prediction  of  the  destruction  of  Jeru- 
salem, and  finds  the  event  to  follow  the  prophe- 
cy, can  doubt  the  divinitv  of  his  character  and 
mission? 


parley's  farewell.  289 

Chapter   XVII. 

Review  of  the  arguments  respecting  the  New  Testament. 

Let  us  now  review  the  arguments  we  have 
brought  forward,  and  see  what  a  weight  of  evi- 
dence there  is  in  favor  of  the  authenticity  and 
veracity  of  the  New  Testament,  and  how 
clearly  the  divine  origin  of  Christianity  is  de- 
monstrated. 

In  the  first  place  it  was  shown  that  a  revela- 
tion of  God's  will,  more  full  than  is  made  mani- 
fest by  the  light  of  nature,  was  needed  by  man, 
and  it  was  inferred  from  analogy  that  it  was 
reasonable  to  expect  such  a  revelation. 

We  have  seen  that  Tacitus,  an  accredited 
Roman  historian,  states  the  fact  that  Christ 
was  executed  in  Judea  for  his  religion,  and  that 
the  Christian  faith  rapidly  increased  and  ex- 
tended itself  to  other  countries.  Here  is  a 
confirmation  of  a  material  portion  of  the  New- 
Testament  history,  furnished  by  an  unbeliever. 

We  have  seen  that  the  only  plausible  account 
of  Christ  and  the  commencement  of  Christianity, 
that  has  been  set  up,  is  that  of  the  New  Testa- 
ment ;  for  no  other  is  brought  forward  by  friend 
19 


290  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

or  foe.  As  Christianity  did  originate,  as  Christ 
lived  and  died  for  his  religion,  and  as  there  is 
no  credible  rival  story  of  these  things,  how  can 
we  reject  that  of  the  New  Testament? 

In  confirmation  of  this,  we  find  that  all  the 
Christian  writers,  from  those  who  were  com- 
panions of  the  apostles  to  the  latest  times, 
speak  as  if  the  New-Testament  account  was 
the  true  one,  and  the  only  one. 

To  prove  that  the  books  of  the  New  Testa- 
ment are  genuine  and  authentic,  that  is,  writ- 
ten by  those  to  whom  they  are  attributed,  we 
have  shown  that  there  were,  in  very  early  times, 
multitudes  of  copies,  in  countries  widely  sepa- 
rated ;  and  that  they  were  found  in  many  lan- 
guages. The  style  is  also  appropriate  to  their 
reputed  authors.  Christian  writers  and  church- 
es very  early  came  to  an  agreement  upon  the  sub- 
ject. They  are  quoted  by  early  writers,  as  of 
the  highest  authority  ;  they  were  early  collect- 
ed into  a  volume  ;  they  were  publicly  read  and 
expounded  in  the  assemblies  of  the  early  Chris- 
tians ;  they  were  received  by  different  sects  of 
Christians,  were  appealed  to  by  them,  and 
were  attacked  by  their  enemies,  as  containing 
the  creed  of  the  Christians.     All  these  circum- 


parley's  farewell.  291 

stances  seem  to  afford  conclusive  evidence  of 
their  authenticity — for  all  those  who  had  the 
best  opportunity  to  judge,  concur  in  one  opin- 
ion on  this  point. 

In  proof  of  the  truth  or  veracity  of  the  New- 
Testament  history,  we  have  adduced  the  candor 
of  the  writers  ;  the  naturalness  of  their  mode  of 
writing ;  the  wonderful  unity  or  harmony  of 
Christ's  character  ;  the  remarkable  accuracy 
of  the  historical  details  and  allusions  to  man- 
ners and  customs,  when  compared  with  Jewish 
writers  ;  the  originality,  wisdom  and  elevation 
of  Christ's  doctrine,  entirely  beyond  the  capa- 
city of  the  evangelists  to  invent  ;  the  purity 
and  exaltation  of  Christ's  character,  the  great- 
est ever  conceived,  and  above  all  human  inven- 
tion ;  the  rapid  extension  of  Christianity  in  Je- 
rusalem and  Judea,  where  the  best  possible 
means  for  investigating  its  claims  existed,  and 
where  conviction,  founded  upon  evidence,  must 
have  been,  in  part,  the  means  of  propagating  it. 

To  prove  the  divine  mission  of  Christ,  we 
might  refer  to  his  morality  ;  to  the  originality 
and  sublimity  of  his  doctrines  ;  to  the  purity  of 
his  character,  surpassing  every  human  example  ; 
to  his  incontestable  miracles  ;  to  the  prophecies 


292  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

of  the  Old  Testament,  uttered  before  he  came, 
and  literally  fulfilled  in  him  ;  to  his  own  re- 
markable prophecy  of  the  destruction  of  Je- 
rusalem, which  afterwards  came  to  pass  as  he 
had  predicted  ;  to  the  success  and  final  tri- 
umph of  his  religion,  aided  by  no  wealth,  or 
power,  or  artifice, — yet  opposed  by  interested 
governments,  potentates,  priests,  by  established 
prejudices,  and  the  suggestions  of  the  selfish 
human  heart. 

Is  it  possible  for  all  these  signs  and  evi- 
dences of  truth  to  fail?  If  a  person  embraces 
the  belief  that  the  New  Testament  is  a  fable 
and  Christ  an  impostor,  does  he  not  take  the 
improbable  and  incredible  side  of  the  question? 
Let  a  person  consider  how  difficult  it  is  for  a 
rogue  to  fabricate  a  story  without  exposing 
himself  to  certain  detection,  and  he  will  see  the 
force  of  demonstration  which  belongs  to  this 
accumulated  evidence,  in  favor  of  the  truth  of 
the  New  Testament. 

How  difficult  is  it  for  a  counterfeiter  even  of 
bank  notes  to  escape  exposure !  How  nearly  im- 
possible for  a  murderer  to  secure  himself  from 
discovery  !  How  easily  all  the  artifices  and 
disguises    of  thieves,   robbers    and    pickpock- 


parley's  farewell.  293 

ets,  in  framing  their  stories,  are  frustrated  !  And 
yet  the  Gospel  has  stood  to  this  day,  defying 
every  charge  of  inconsistency,  every  refutation 
of  fact,  every  contradiction  from  history ! 
Every  engine  of  wit,  malice,  ridicule,  logic, 
criticism,  eloquence,  learning,  and  ingenuity, 
has  been  brought  to  bear  upon  it,  without  avail. 
It  has  stood  the  test  of  time,  the  sifting  of 
ages.  Is  such  a  work  now  to  be  set  down  as 
only  a  cunningly  devised  fable?  A  man  who 
wishes  to  escape  receiving  the  greatest  of  mir- 
acles, must  believe  the  story  of  the  evangelists  ; 
for  never  has  such  a  weight  of  evidence  been 
accumulated  in  favor  of  a  falsehood,  as  prophe- 
cy, history,  analogy,  and  human  events  have 
heaped  up  in  favor  of  the  truth  of  the  New 
Testament,  and  the  divinity  of  Christ's  mis- 
sion. If  these  evidences  lie,  then  a  miracle 
has  been  performed  to  which  human  history 
furnishes  no  parallel  ;  then  human  reason  is  a 
misguiding  light,  and  the  acknowledged  tests 
of  truth  are  but  evidences  of  falsehood. 


294)  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

Chapter  XYIII. 

Inspiration  of  the  New-  Testament  books. 

Having  come  to  the  conclusion  that  the 
books  of  the  New  Testament  are  historically 
true,  and  that  Christ  was  a  divine  messenger, 
we  come  now  to  consider  whether  the  writers 
of  these  works  were  inspired  by  the  Spirit  of 
God,  and  whether  the  doctrines  therein  con- 
tained lay  just  claim  to  the  belief  and  obser- 
vance of  mankind. 

The  divine  authority  of  Christ  is  proved  by 
the  prophecies  concerning  him  ;  by  the  mira- 
cles he  wrought  ;  by  the  sublimity  and  ori- 
ginality of  his  doctrines,  his  morality  and  his 
character.  We  cannot  doubt  then  that  he  was 
sent  of  God.  And  for  what  purpose  was  he 
sent  ?  Unquestionably  to  reveal  truth ;  for 
God  would  not  grant  such  power  as  Christ 
possessed  and  exercised  to  an  impostor  or  a  fa- 
natic. God  would  not  have  bestowed  the  gift  of 
prophecy  upon  Isaiah  and  others  to  predict  the 
coming  of  Christ,  and  persuade  mankind  to 
believe  in  him,  if  he  was  to  be  a  deceiver  or 
a  cheat. 


parley's  farewell.  295 

We  are  bound  then  to  consider  Christ  as 
delivering  the  word  of  God  :  but  the  question 
now  before  us  is,  did  the  evangelists  accu- 
rately represent  what  Christ  said?  We  have  the 
best  reason  to  believe  that  they  did,  and  that 
in  writing  their  histories  they  were  aided  by 
the  Spirit  of  God,  and  thus  preserved  from 
essential  error.  This  is  the  view  taken  of  the 
Gospels  by  the  early  Christians,  those  who  had 
communion  with  the  apostles,  and  who  had  the 
best  possible  means  of  knowing  the  truth.  Be- 
sides, the  general  harmony  of  the  Gospels  in 
every  material  respect  ;  the  simplicity  and 
beauty  of  the  narratives  ;  the  unity  with  which 
Christ's  doctrines  are  represented,  and  the 
power  with  which  his  exalted  character  is 
delineated ;  the  remarkable  preservation  of 
these  books ;  their  efficacy  in  elevating  and 
purifying  the  heart,  attested  by  Christians  of 
all  ages  ; — these  are  considered  incontestable 
evidences  that  the  Spirit  of  God  has  ever 
watched  over  these  writings — inspiring  them 
in  the  first  instance,  and  guarding  them  from 
destruction  or  essential  mutation  in  after  times. 

Some  of  the  same  arguments  apply  to  the 
Acts  of  the  Apostles  and  the  Epistles  ;  besides 


298  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

duced  philosophers  and  poets — who  even  now 
challenge  the  admiration  of  mankind, — were 
groping  in  religious  and  moral  darkness,  una- 
ble to  discover  even  a  ray  of  that  glorious 
light,  which  all  this  time  was  shining  in  the 
books  of  the  Old  Testament  among  the  ob- 
scure, illiterate,  despised  Jews  ? 

Let  us  make  a  comparison.  Homer  is  ad- 
mitted to  have  been  a  man  of  great  genius. 
He  is  usually  regarded  as  the  greatest  and 
most  sublime  poet  that  ever  lived.  His  works 
have  come  down  to  us,  nearly  perfect.  They 
indeed  display  a  vigor  of  fancy,  a  power  of  in- 
vention, a  knowledge  of  human  nature,  fully 
entitling  him  to  the  great  name  that  is  assigned 
to  him. 

A  considerable  portion  of  his  works  are  de- 
voted to  religious  topics.  His  system  of  the- 
ology is,  that  there  are  a  multitude  of  gods 
and  goddesses,  over  whom  there  is  one  great 
presiding  deity.  These  he  has  portrayed  with 
all  the  force  of  his  inimitable  pencil.  And  yet 
what  are  they  ?  The  sublimest  conceptions 
of  this  master-poet  represent  the  best  and 
greatest  of  these  deities  as  filled  with  the  vil- 


parley's   farewell.  299 

est  of  human  passions,  and  tarnished  with  the 
coarsest  and  grossest  of  human  vices. 

In  religion,  then,  Homer  is  a  child  ;  with 
the  powerful  wing  of  genius,  he  cannot  rise 
above  the  vulgar  theology  of  his  day  and  gen- 
eration ;  his  noblest  conception  of  God  is  Ju- 
piter, who  would,  on  earth,  be  a  very  bad,  un- 
principled and  despicable  man. 

Homer  is  reputed  to  have  lived  about  900 
years  before  Christ,  and  to  have  been  brought 
up  among  a  people  more  civilized  and  farther 
advanced  in  knowledge  than  the  Jews  at  the 
same  period  of  time.  He  appears  also  to  have 
been  a  man  of  considerable  learning,  and  has 
been  thought  to  have  travelled  in  Egypt,  then 
the  great  centre  of  civilization  and  philosophy. 

About  the  same  age,  or  perhaps  100  years  af- 
ter, Isaiah,  the  prophet  of  the  Jews,  flourished. 
He  was  not  a  man  of  genius  ;  he  had  no  ad- 
vantages of  general  instruction  ;  he  was  infe- 
rior to  Homer  in  knowledge  and  learning  ;  he 
had  had  no  advantages  from  travel,  or  inter- 
course with  enlightened  people.  In  every  thing 
belonging  to  education,  he  was  far  below  the 
children  in  our  common  schools,  for  they  are 
taught  a  vast  deal    that    Isaiah  never  knew. 


300  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

And  yet  Isaiah,  in  his  conceptions  of  the  De- 
ity, not  only  put  Homer  to  the  blush,  but  no 
after  age  has  been  able  to  rival  his  pages.  He 
not  only  conceived  the  grand  idea  of  ONE 
GOD,  the  truth  of  which  subsequent  ages 
have  demonstrated,  but  he  delineated  God's 
character  with  a  beauty,  power  and  sublimity, 
that  has  never  been  equalled.  Let  us  quote  a 
few  passages. 

"  Thus  saith  God  the  Lord,  he  that  creat- 
ed the  heavens,  and  stretched  them  out ;  he 
that  spread  forth  the  earth,  and  that  which 
cometh  out  of  it  ;  he  that  giveth  breath  unto 
the  people  upon  it,  and  spirit  to  them  that  walk 
therein  :  I  the  Lord  have  called  thee  in  right- 
eousness, and  will  hold  thy  hand,  and  will  keep 
thee,  and  give  thee  for  a  covenant  of  the  people, 
for  a  light  of  the  Gentiles  :  to  open  the  blind 
eyes,  to  bring  out  the  prisoners  from  the  pris- 
on, and  them  that  sit  in  darkness  out  of  the 
prison-house.  I  am  the  Lord :  that  is  my 
name  :  and  my  glory  will  I  not  give  to  another, 
neither  my  praise  to  graven  images/  • — Isaiah, 
ch.  xlii. 

"  I  am  the  Lord,  and  there  is  none  else, 
there  is  no  God  besides  me  :  I  girded  thee, 


parley's   farewell.  301 

though  thou  hast  not  known  me  :  that  they 
may  know  from  the  rising  of  the  sun,  and  from 
the  west,  that  there  is  none  besides  me.  I  am 
the  Lord,  and  there  is  none  else.  I  form  the 
light,  and  create  darkness  :  I  make  peace  and 
create  evil :  I  the  Lord  do  all  these  things. 
Drop  down,  ye  heavens,  from  above,  and  let 
the  skies  pour  down  righteousness  :  let  the 
earth  open,  and  let  them  bring  forth  salvation, 
and  let  righteousness  spring  up  together  ;  I  the 
Lord  have  created  it."  "  For  thus  saith  the 
Lord  that  created  the  heavens ;  God  himself 
that  formed  the  earth  and  made  it  ;  he  hath 
established  it,  he  created  it  not  in  vain,  he 
formed  it  to  be  inhabited  :  I  am  the  Lord  ; 
and  there  is  none  else.  I  have  not  spoken 
in  secret,  in  a  dark  place  of  the  earth  :  I  said 
not  unto  the  seed  of  Jacob,  Seek  ye  me  in 
vain  :  I  the  Lord  speak  righteousness,  I  de- 
clare things  that  are  right." 

"  Look  unto  me,  and  be  ye  saved,  all  the 
ends  of  the  earth  :  for  I  am  God,  and  there 
is  none  else.  I  have  sworn  by  myself,  the 
word  is  gone  out  of  my  mouth  in  righteousness, 
and  shall  not  return,  That  unto  me  every  knee 


302  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

shall  bow,  every  tongue  shall  swear."— 
Isaiah,  ch.  xlv. 

"  For  the  Lord  shall  comfort  Zion  :  he  will 
comfort  all  her  waste  places ;  and  he  will 
make  her  wilderness  like  Eden,  and  her  desert 
like  the  garden  of  the  Lord  ;  joy  and  gladness 
shall  he  found  therein,  thanksgiving,  and  the 
voice  of  melody. 

"  Hearken  unto  me,  my  people ;  and  give  ear 
unto  me,  O  my  nation  :  for  a  law  shall  proceed 
from  me,  and  I  will  make  my  judgment  to  rest 
for  a  light  of  the  people.  My  righteousness 
is  near  ;  my  salvation  is  gone  forth,  and  mine 
arms  shall  judge  the  people  ;  the  isles  shall 
wait  upon  me,  and  on  mine  arm  shall  they 
trust.  Lift  up  your  eyes  to  the  heavens,  and 
look  upon  the  earth  beneath  :  for  the  heavens 
shall  vanish  away  like  smoke,  and  the  earth 
shall  wax  old  like  a  garment,  and  they  that 
dwell  therein  shall  die  in  like  manner  :  but  my 
salvation  shall  be  for  ever,  and  my  righteous- 
ness shall  not  be  abolished." — Isaiah,  ch.  li. 

Now  let  any  one  read  these  verses  and  com- 
pare them  with  all  that  heathen  antiquity  has 
produced  respecting  the  Deity,  and  let  him 
say  how  an  ignorant  man,  in  an  unlettered  age 


parley's  farewell.  303 

and  among  an  unenlightened  people,  could 
have  risen  to  conceptions,  so  lofty  in  them- 
selves, and  so  superior  to  all  that  his  cotempo- 
raries  produced,  but  by  the  aid  of  inspiration. 
What  could  have  made  Isaiah  so  much  greater 
than  Homer,  but  this  ? 


Chapter  XX. 

The  prophet  Habaklcuk. 


Let  me  make  a  few  extracts  from  the  pro- 
phet Habakkuk,  who  flourished  about  a  cen- 
tury after  Isaiah.  I  will  give  them  according 
to  the  translation  of  Archbishop  Newcombe. 
They  are  from  the  third  chapter. 

"  God  came  from  Teman, 
And  the  Holy  One  from  Mount  Paran : 
His  glory  covered  the  heavens, 
And  the  earth  was  full  of  his  praise. 
His  brightness  was  as  the  light : 
Rays  streamed  from  his  hand ; 
And  there  was  the  hiding-place  of  his  power. 
Before  him  went  the  pestilence, 
And  flashes  of  fire  went  forth  after  him. 
He  stood  and  measured  the  earth ; 
He  beheld,  and  drove  asunder  the  nations. 


304  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

And  the  everlasting  mountains  were  scattered, 

The  perpetual  hills  bowed  down, 

The  eternal  paths  were  trodden  by  him. 

#         m         m         #         # 
The  mountains  saw  thee,  and  were  troubled ; 
The  overflowing  of  waters  passed  away  : 
The  deep  uttered  its  voice, 
It  lifted  up  its  hands  on  high. 

The  sun  and  the  moon  stood  still  in  their  habitation 

In  the  light  of  thine  arrows  they  vanished, 

In  the  brightness  of  the  lightning  of  thy  spear ! 

In  indignation  thou  didst  march  through  the  land, 

In  wrath  thou  didst  thresh  the  heathen. 

Thou  wentest  forth  for  the  deliverance  of  thy  people, 

Even  for  the  deliverance  of  thine  anointed. 

•AA.  *&&.  •&£'  -&£•  -AA. 

-7f-  -7?  W  •TP  vf- 

Although  the  fig- tree  shall  not  nourish, 

And  there  be  no  produce  in  the  vines  ; 

The  fruit  of  the  ojive  shall  fail, 

And  the  fields  shall  yield  no  food ; 

The  flocks  shall  be  cut  off  from  the  fold, 

And  there  be  no  herd  in  the  stalls ; 

Yet  will  I  rejoice  in  Jehovah, 

I  will  exult  in  the  God  of  my  salvation. 

The  Lord  Jehovah  is  my  strength. 

He  will  make  my  feet  like  hind's  feet, 

He  will  cause  me  to  tread  on  mine  high  places." 

These  are  the  words  of  another  Jewish  pro- 
phet ;  and  what  is  there  in  any  ancient  heathen 
writer  that  gives  us  such  sublime  ideas  of  God? 


parley's   farewell.  305 

And  how  was  this  obscure  man  able  to  sur- 
pass the  boasted  genius  of  Greece  and  Rome  ; 
how  did  he  transcend  all  that  the  human  mind 
has  since  been  able  to  produce,  but  through 
the  gift  of  inspiration  ? 


Chapter   XXI. 


The   Old   Testament    continued.     Prophecies.     Babylon.      The  Arabs. 
Jews.     Other  prophecies. 

Another  proof  of  the  inspiration  of  the  books 
of  the  Old  Testament  is  derived  from  prophe- 
cies, afterwards  fulfilled.  I  have  introduced 
an  example  in  Isaiah's  prophecy,  respecting  our 
Savior,  which  I  have  shown  to  have  been 
literally  fulfilled  ;  and  might  quote  other  pas- 
sages from  the  same  prophet,  and  from  others, 
applicable  to  Christ,  and  as  clearly  verified. 
But  I  will  select  one  or  two  other  instances, 
where  the  incontestable  proof  of  fulfilment 
exists  in  our  own  day. 

In  the  time  of  Isaiah,  Babylon,  situated 
upon  the  river  Euphrates,  was  a  city  of  the 
greatest  magnificence.  It  was  about  forty- 
eight  miles  in  circumference,  and  was  de- 
20 


306  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

fended  by  walls  of  vast  height  and  thickness. 
It  was  the  capital  of  the  great  empire  of 
Assyria,  and  was  enriched  by  her  emperors 
with  the  spoils  of  the  East.  It  was  indeed 
a  great  and  proud  city,  and  rejoiced  in  its 
splendor.  Nothing  could  seem  more  impro- 
bable than  that  this  metropolis  should  be  de- 
stroyed, and  the  very  place  where  it  stood 
become  a  scene  of  desolation  ;  yet  the  prophet 
lifted  up  his  voice  and  pronounced  its  doom, 
in  the  following  remarkable  passages : 

"  The  noise  of  a  multitude  hi  the  mountains, 
like  as  of  a  great  people  ;  a  tumultuous  noise 
of  the  kingdoms  of  nations  gathered  together : 
the  Lord  of  hosts  mustereth  the  host  of  the 
battle.  They  come  from  a  far  country,  from 
the  end  of  heaven,  even  the  Lord,  and  the 
weapons  of  his  indignation,  to  destroy  the 
whole  land. 

"  Howl  ye  ;  for  the  day  of  the  Lord  is  at 
hand  ;  it  shall  come  as  a  destruction  from  the 
Almighty.  Therefore  shall  all  hands  be 
faint,  and  every  man's  heart  shall  melt  ;  and 
they  shall  be  afraid  ;  pangs  and  sorrows  shall 
take  hold  of  them  ;  they  shall  be  in  pain  as  a 
woman  that  travaileth  :  they  shall  be  amazed 


parley's  farewell.  307 

one  at  another  ;  their  faces  shall  be  as  flames. 
Behold,  the  day  of  the  Lord  cometh,  cruel 
both  with  wrath  and  fierce  anger,  to  lay  the 
land  desolate  :  and  he  shall  destroy  the  sin- 
ners thereof  out  of  it.  For  the  stars  of  heaven 
and  the  constellations  thereof  shall  not  give  their 
light  :  the  sun  shall  be  darkened  in  his  going 
forth,  and  the  moon  shall  not  cause  her  light 
to  shine.  And  I  will  punish  the  world  for 
their  evil,  and  the  wicked  for  their  iniquity  ; 
and  I  will  cause  the  arrogancy  of  the  proud  to 
cease,  and  will  lay  low  the  haughtiness  of  the 
terrible." 

"  And  Babylon,  the  glory  of  kingdoms,  the 
beauty  of  the  Chaldees'  excellency,  shall  be  as 
when  God  overthrew  Sodom  and  Gomorrah. 
It  shall  never  be  inhabited,  neither  shall  it  be 
dwelt  in  from  generation  to  generation  :  nei- 
ther shall  the  Arabian  pitch  tent  there  ;  neither 
shall  the  shepherds  make  their  fold  there : 
but  wild  beasts  of  the  desert  shall  lie  there  ; 
and  their  houses  shall  be  full  of  doleful  crea- 
tures ;  and  owls  shall  dwell  there,  and  satyrs 
shall  dance  there.  And  the  wild  beasts  of 
the  islands  shall  cry  in  their  desolate  houses, 
and  dragons  in  their  pleasant  palaces  :  and  her 


308  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

time  is  near  to  come,  and  her  days  shall  not 
be  prolonged." — Isaiah,  ch.  xiii. 

About  a  hundred  years  after  this  prediction, 
Babylon  was  taken  by  Cyrus,  king  of  Persia, 
and  from  that  time  it  continued  to  decline.  It 
gradually  sunk  into  insignificance,  and,  in  spite 
of  attempts  to  revive  its  former  splendor,  it 
at  last  became  a  heap  of  ruins.  Modern  tra- 
vellers have  frequently  visited  the  spot,  and 
they  tell  us  that  the  scene  corresponds  literally 
with  the  preceding  predictions.  In  the  deso- 
lation which  now  marks  the  site  of  the  ancient 
city  there  are  numerous  caves,  where  even  the 
identical  birds  and  animals  mentioned  by 
Isaiah  are  found  to  have  taken  up  their  abode. 
Here,  then,  is  an  existing  witness  to  the  literal 
truth  and  exact  fulfilment  of  prophecy,  that 
cannot  be  resisted. 

To  this  I  could  easily  add  other  instances 
equally  striking.  It  was  predicted  by  one  of 
the  prophets,  of  Ishmael's  descendants,  that 
"  their  hand  should  be  against  every  man,  and 
every  man's  hand  against  them."  The  Arabs 
are  the  posterity  of  Ishmael,  a  wild  and  wan- 
dering race,  living  apart  from  the  rest  of  the 
world,  and  robbing  those  they  meet.     This  is 


parley's  farewell.  309 

their  character,  and  it  has  been  so  for  ages. 
Could  any  thing  be  more  descriptive  of  this 
peculiar  people  than  this  prophecy,  uttered  of 
them  thousands  of  years  ago  ? 

The  Jews,  too,  afford  a  wonderful  proof  of 
the  truth  of  ancient  predictions.  It  was  said 
that  "  they  should  be  plucked  from  off  their 
own  land,  and  removed  into  all  the  kingdoms 
of  the  earth,"  and  behold  it  is  done.  It  was 
said  that  they  should  "  be  led  away  captive 
into  all  nations,  and  Jerusalem  be  trodden 
down  of  the  Gentiles  ;"  and  this  is  literally 
accomplished.  Other  passages  speak  of  their 
final  restoration  to  Jerusalem,  the  land  of  their 
fathers  ;  and  scattered  as  they  are,  they  are 
still  a  distinct  people,  and  seem  to  stand  ready 
for  the  appointed  time  to  fulfil  this  prediction. 


Chapter   XXII. 


Review  of  the  argument  for    the    truth  and  inspiration  of  the  Old 
Testament. 

The  claim  of  the  Old-Testament  books,  to 
be  regarded  as  "  given  by  inspiration,"  rests 
then  upon  very  strong  grounds.     This  claim 


310  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

had  been  maintained  by  the  Jews  for  ages,  and 
Christ,  with  his  apostles,  expressly  sanctioned 
it.  The  testimony  of  witnesses,  shown  to  have 
been  sent  of  God,  ought  to  be  conclusive. 

But  the  argument  is  strongly  fortified  by 
other  considerations.  These  books  contained 
ideas  entirely  above  the  ages  in  which  they 
were  produced.  If  we  do  not  refer  their  origin 
to  inspiration,  it  is  impossible  to  account  for 
them.  While  all  other  nations  were  in  total 
religious  darkness,  a  light  is  kindled  in  the 
midst  of  one  of  the  most  ignorant  and  unen- 
lightened of  all  nations,  by  obscure  and  illite- 
rate men,  which  gathers  brightness  as  time 
advances,  and  at  length,  rising  to  the  sky,  be- 
comes the  sun  of  even  our  enlightened  age  ! 
Could  such  a  light  be  created  by  ignorance 
and  weakness,  among  a  people  remarkable  for 
their  intellectual  degradation  ?  It  would  seem 
that  one  might  positively  answer  in  the  nega- 
tive. The  most  rational  supposition  surely  is, 
that  God  supplied  the  fire,  by  which  his  min- 
isters kindled  the  light  of  truth,  and  which 
since,  aided  by  a  clearer  revelation,  has  illumi- 
nated the  world.  It  was  inspiration,  then,  that 
gave  Isaiah   the  advantage  over  Homer,  and 


parley^  farewell.  311 

Enabled  a  man  of  common  mould  to  surpass 
the  greatest  human  genius,  as  much  as  a 
giant's  strength  is  superior  to  an  infant's  ;  that 
bestowed  on  the  minstrelsy  of  Habakkuk,  a 
sublimity  which  no  earth-strung  lyre  can  rival. 
It  was  the  books  of  the  Old  Testament  that 
elevated  the  minds  of  the  Jews  to  the  one  true 
God,  while  the  learned  Egyptians  were  wor- 
shippers of  serpents  and  monkeys,  and  while 
the  polished  Greeks  and  magnificent  Romans, 
were  led  captive  by  the  polluted  and  polluting 
rites  of  imaginary  divinities. 

To  this  satisfactory  argument,  we  add  the 
proofs  derived  from  prophecy.  We  have 
shown  that  the  power  of  foretelling  events  was 
actually  given  to  the  Jewish  prophets  :  we 
know  that  their  predictions  were  uttered  thou- 
sands of  years  ago,  and  we  have  before  us 
enduring  witnesses  to  their  literal  fulfilment. 
What  higher  evidence  can  be  given  of  divine 
inspiration,  than  a  power  which  enables  man 
to  penetrate  the  depths  of  the  future,  and  re- 
veal what  is  to  come  to  pass  ?  This  is  the 
attribute  of  God  alone,  and  he  who  possesses 
it,  comes  to  us  with  God's  seal  set  to  his  com- 
mission. 


312  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

Thus  the  proofs  of  the  divine  origin  of  the 
Old  Testament  are  threefold — consisting  of 
the  testimonies  of  Christ  and  his  apostles  ;  the 
sublimity  of  its  doctrines  and  its  superiority  to 
all  cotemporary  human  productions,  or  human 
productions  of  any  age  ;  and  the  gift  of  pro- 
phecy, possessed  by  many  of  its  writers.  These 
three  strands,  like  those  which  are  twisted 
together  in  a  cable,  render  the  argument  so 
strong,  that  the  human  understanding  may 
safely  attach  to  it  its  anchor  of  faith,  fearing 
not  that  the  tempest  shall  ever  prevail  against  it. 


Chapter  XXIII. 


The  Bible  then  is  true  :  it  has  approved  itself  to  the  minds  of  millions,  as 
a  divine  revelation;  and  all  the  discoveries  of  modern  science  but  confirm  its 
veracity. 

The  Bible  then  is  true :  it  is  the  word  of 
God.  It  is  so  received,  by  the  mass  of  man- 
kind, among  the  most  highly  educated  nations 
of  the  world.  It  has  been  attacked,  but  it  has 
come  off  triumphant  in  every  trial.  Investiga- 
tion has  only  served  to  multiply  the  proofs  of 
its  veracity.     Time,  which  tests  the  validity  of 


parley's  farewell.  313 

every  institution,  and  which  has  exploded  a 
multitude  of  errors  once  entertained  by  man- 
kind, has  sanctioned  the  scriptures,  and  is  con- 
tinually adding  to  the  evidences  of  their  di- 
vine origin. 

It  is  now  more  than  seventeen  centuries 
since  the  Bible  was  completed.  From  that 
time  it  has  been  received  as  a  revelation  from 
Heaven,  by  all  Christians.  And  how  many 
millions  of  individuals  have  found  it  to  be  all 
they  could  hope  or  desire  in  a  revelation  of 
God's  will!  How  many  millions  have  found 
in  its  sacred  pages  consolations  and  joys 
which  the  world  could  neither  give  nor  take 
away  !  We  have  the  testimony  of  millions 
of  former  ages,  and  of  millions  now  on  the 
earth,  that  the  Bible  has  proved  itself  to  them, 
in  their  own  experience,  to  be  possessed  of  a 
power  beyond  all  other  writings,  a  power 
which  elevates  them  above  the  fears  or  hopes, 
the  joys  or  sorrows,  of  this  life. 

There  is  another  evidence,  of  a  negative  kind, 
unfolded  by  time,  which  is,  however,  very  strong 
in  favor  of  the  scriptures.  These  were  all 
written  long  ago,  when  science  was  in  its  in- 
fancy.    Astronomy,  Geography,  Natural  His- 


314  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

tory,  Geology,  now  so  well  understood  even  by 
schoolboys,  were  then  but  partially  compre- 
hended. Even  in  the  time  of  Christ,  not  one 
third  part  of  the  surface  of  the  globe  had  been 
traversed  by  man  ;  the  shape  of  this  earth  was 
unknown  ;  the  solar  system  and  its  revolutions 
were  not  reached  even  by  conjecture.  The 
animal  races  had  not  been  scientifically  investi- 
gated, and  the  structure  of  the  earth,  as  unfold- 
ed by  modern  geology,  had  not  been  the  subject 
of  inquiry. 

Yet  in  respect  to  most  of  these  topics,  we 
find  numerous  passages  in  the  Old  and  New 
Testament.  How  is  it  to  be  accounted  for, 
that  these  writers  have  been  preserved  from 
running  into  fatal  mistakes,  when  they  were 
discoursing  upon  things  of  which  they,  with  the 
age,  were  ignorant,  but  which  modern  science 
has  unfolded?  To  my  mind  this  argument  is 
of  great  weight.  I  do  not  see  how  it  is  possible 
to  resist  the  obvious  inference  that  God's 
Spirit  has  presided  over  every  page  of  the 
Bible  and  protected  it  from  fatal  error.  If  the 
Bible  had  been  a  mere  human  production,  the 
work  as  it  is  of  about  thirty  different  persons,  it 
seems  to  me  certain  that  it  must  have  contained 


parley's   farewell.  315 

statements  that  would  have  been  flatly  contra- 
dicted by  facts  resulting  from  modern  dis- 
covery. 


Chapter  XXIV. 

Difficulties  answered. —  Conclusion. 

If  the  evidence  in  favor  of  the  Bible  is  thus 
so  strong,  why  should  any  person  reject  it?  I 
know  it  is  said  there  are  difficulties.  There  are 
some  passages  in  one  part  of  the  Bible  which 
at  first  sight  seem  to  contradict  others ;  some 
parts,  also,  are  obscure  and  of  doubtful  inter- 
pretation. Beside,  Christians,  who  believe  the 
Bible,  do  not  conform  fully  to  its  precepts ;  Chris- 
tians too  are  divided  as  to  its  meaning  in  cer- 
tain important  respects.  Christian  nations, 
like  others,  engage  in  war,  and  are  marked 
with  prevalent  vices.  Miracles  are  objected  to 
as  hard  to  be  believed. 

These,  and  other  difficulties,  have  often  been 
urged  against  the  scriptures.  I  am  willing  to 
admit  that  they  are  difficulties  ;  but  there  are 
four  obvious  answers  to  be  made,  and  they 
ought  to  be  satisfactory. 


316  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

The  first  is,  that  all  these  allegations  against 
the  Bible  have  been  fully  and  fairly  investiga- 
ted, both  by  ministers  of  religion  and  by  lay- 
men, and  have  been  satisfactorily  reconciled 
with  the  substantial  truth  of  the  sacred  scrip- 
tures. 

The  second  is,  that  the  difficulties  suggested 
are  rather  apparent  than  real ;  and  there  is 
abundant  evidence  that,  to  a  candid  and  well- 
disposed  mind,  they  are  by  no  means  insupera- 
ble. A  person  who  sits  down  to  the  reading 
of  the  scriptures,  with  a  perfect  willingness  to 
receive  the  truth  and  abide  by  the  result,  is 
never  driven  by  these  difficulties  to  infidelity. 
In  religion,  God  may  deal  with  man  as  in 
nature.  To  gain  the  good  things  of  life,  we 
must  sow,  and  toil,  and  cultivate,  else  we  can- 
not enjoy  the  harvest.  God  has  not,  in  this, 
taken  away  the  necessity  of  exertion  to  man, 
for  man's  constitution  requires  exertion.  So 
in  religion  God  has  not  taken  away  man's  free 
agency.  He  has  not  revealed  his  will  in  such 
a  manner  as  to  compel  belief,  so  that  in  belief 
there  is  no  exercise  of  the  will,  and  therefore 
no  virtue.  But  God  has  given  to  man  good  and 
satisfactory  proofs  that   in  the  Bible   he  has 


parley's  farewell.  317 

bestowed  a  revelation  of  his  will,  and  if  man 
will,  as  in  nature,  cultivate  these  proofs  with  a 
willingness  to  reap  the  harvest,  he  will  surely 
be  blest  with  success.  Beside,  we  may  believe 
that  the  difficulties  in  religion  have  led  to  in- 
vestigation, and  to  an  excitement  of  men's 
minds,  favorable  to  an  increase  of  interest  in 
the  subject.  Discussion,  like  the  autumn 
winds  which  scatter  the  seeds  of  summer,  has 
undoubtedly  extended  the  knowledge  and  mul- 
tiplied the  fruits  of  religion. 

The  third  answer  to  the  difficulties  suggest- 
ed, is,  that  if  they  are  permitted  to  sweep 
away  the  Bible  as  a  fable  and  a  falsehood,  we 
permit  the  weak  to  prevail  against  the  strong, 
and  trample  down  with  mere  doubts,  a  mass 
of  wisdom  never  yet  accumulated  in  favor  of  a 
lie.  We  contradict  the  acknowledged  principles 
of  human  reason,  which  require  us  to  let  our 
belief  go  with  the  scale  in  which  the  weight  of 
evidence  preponderates.  We  deal  with  the  Bi- 
ble as  we  do  not  with  any  other  ancient  writings ; 
we  believe  in  Tacitus,  and  Homer,  and  the 
shadowy  forms  of  profane  antiquity  ;  but  we 
distrust  the  prophets,  and  the  evangelists,  and 
Christ,  and  Paul !     We  listen  to  the  voice  of 


318  REVEALED    RELIGION. 

tradition,  when  it  tells  us  of  battles  and  gar- 
ments rolled  in  blood,  but  we  turn  an  ear  of 
incredulity  to  the  Christian  fathers,  to  the 
companions  of  the  apostles,  to  martyrs  who 
sealed  their  faith  in  triumph  over  tortures  and 
death. 

The  fourth  answer  is,  that  if  the  Bible  is  not 
true,  then  man  has  no  other  revelation  of  God's 
will  than  the  dim  light  of  nature ;  man  is  a  mys- 
tery to  himself,  and  all  around  him  is  mystery. 
If  the  Bible  is  false,  God  has  not  dealt  with 
man  as  with  his  other  creatures.  To  the  ani- 
mal creation  he  has  given  a  clear  and  decisive 
revelation.  Instinct  is  to  them  a  guide,  and  it 
answers  all  the  purposes  for  which  it  was  intend- 
ed. It  comes  fully  up  to  the  wants  of  these 
creatures.  Various  kinds  of  water  birds,  as  we 
all  know,  are  under  the  necessity  of  making 
long  migrations,  and  often  are  obliged  to  cross 
broad  sheets  of  water. 

"  Who  bade  the  stork,  Columbus-like,  explore 
Heavens  not  his  own,  and  worlds  unknown  before  ? 
Who  calls  the  council,  states  the  certain  day, 
Who  forms  the  phalanx,  and  who  points  the  way  ? " 

God  has  done  all  that  is  necessary  for  these 


parley's   farewell.  319 

feathered  voyagers  ;  and  yet,  if  the  Bible  is 
false,  he  has  elevated  man  to  a  higher  flight, 
and  left  him  without  chart  or  compass,  to  wan- 
der in  hopeless  doubt  and  unappeasable  anxi- 
ety. Is  such  a  supposition  consistent  with  the 
analogy  of  nature?  If  God  has  not  made  pro- 
vision to  guide  the  mind  of  man,  when  he  has 
filled  it  with  hopes,  expectations,  and  anticipa- 
tions of  immortality,  has  he  not  dealt  by  the  stork 
as  he  has  not  by  man  ;  has  he  not  revealed 
himself  to  the  feathered  tribes,  and  shut  him- 
self from  the  spirit  of  man?  Has  he  not  made 
all  things  clear  to  the  animal  world  ;  and  all 
things  mysterious  to  man? 

The  difficulties,  then,  in  the  way  of  receiving 
the  scriptures  as  the  word  of  God,  if  permitted 
to  overpower  our  judgment,  only  run  us  into  other 
and  more  formidable  difficulties.  It  ought  to 
be  proof  to  us,  if  they  unsettle  our  faith,  of  a 
want  of  proper  balance  in  our  minds,  and  should 
be  regarded  as  a  just  ground  of  alarm.  The 
subject  is  too  serious  for  mistake.  If  the  Bi- 
ble is  true,  God  is  with  us,  and  shall  we  listen? 
shall  we  obey?  The  true  happiness  of  life, 
the  bliss  of  eternity,  are  involved  in  the  ques- 
tion.     Interests    of   indescribable   value    are 


320  FAREWELL. 

at  stake.  Shall  we  believe  and  be  saved,  or 
take  the  risk  of  the  alternative  presented  by 
Christ  and  his  apostles  1 


FAREWELL 


I  have  now  finished  what  I  intended  to  say 
upon  these  two  great  topics  of  Natural  and 
Revealed  Religion.  The  Bible  being  proved 
to  be  the  word  of  God,  I  need  not  say  how 
reverently  and  how  earnestly  it  should  be  read, 
with  a  view  to  ascertain  what  truths  it  con- 
tains. We  are  created  with  a  capacity  for 
happiness  and  misery  ;  the  former  we  desire, 
the  latter  we  dread.  This  Book  is  our  only 
true  and  infallible  guide  ;  this  alone  can  teach 
man  how  to  be  happy  here  and  hereafter.  It 
is  the  only  map  of  life,  which  lays  down  the 
safe  and  sure  roads  to  the  country  we  all  seek. 

Make  the  Bible  then  your  constant  compan- 
ion :  look  at  it  day  by  day,  as  the  traveller 
consults  his  guide-book.  But  bear  in  mind 
one  thing  :  the  Bible  is  to  be  read  with  a  spirit 


parley's   farewell.  321 

of  obedience  ;  with  a  single  desire  to  ascertain 
its  true  meaning,  and  a  willingness  to  submit 
implicitly  to  its  injunctions.  Permit  not  your- 
self to  alter  its  sense — to  qualify  or  doubt  its 
passages.  Beware  of  dwelling  upon  difficulties, 
or  if  these  disturb  you,  consult  some  pious 
friend.  Make  the  Bible  your  counsellor  ;  seek 
truth  ;  live  in  the  society  of  the  virtuous  ;  hold 
no  communion  with  the  wicked ;  eschew  vicious 
books.  These  are  the  last  injunctions  of  your 
old  friend,  Peter  Parley. 

And  now  a  few  words  of  farewell.  It  is 
just  ten  years  since  I  wrote  a  book  entitled 
Peter  Parley's  Tales  about  America.  It  was 
kindly  received,  and  I  was  induced  to  write 
others.  These,  too,  met  with  favor  at  the  hands 
of  the  young  public. 

But  when  I  began  my  literary  labors,  I  was 
11    "  "^       4nd  now  mv  life  has 


322  FAREWELL. 

My  dear  young  friends,  you  to  whom  I  have 
been  speaking  in  my  little  books — you  who 
have  so  kindly  listened  to  me,  you  deserve  the 
last  thoughts  of  poor  old  Peter  Parley.  Life 
has  ceased  to  be  a  source  of  happiness  to  me, 
and  I  am  willing  to  depart :  but  to  say  farewell 
to  those  I  have  loved — those  who  have  treated 
me  so  kindly — and  to  know  that  I  shall  see 
their  bright  faces  and  hear  their  glad  voices 
no  more,  has  indeed  something  in  it  hard  to 
bear ;  and  if  my  old  eyes  were  not  too  dry  for 
tears,  I  could  weep  to  think  of  it.  But  it  is 
idle  to  mourn  for  what  cannot  be  avoided  ;  so, 
with  a  cheerful  heart,  I  have  been  preparing  to 
take  leave  of  my  little  friends.  This  book  is 
my  farewell.  It  is  the  last  I  shall  ever  write. 
Take  it,  with  my  best  wishes  for  your  happi- 
ness !  Take  it,  with  the  last  request  of  vonr 
old  friend — wbich  is   fV>°*  ~  - 


parley's  farewell.  323 

mere  worldly  knowledge,  than  in  teaching  you 
that  higher  and  better  wisdom,  which,  in  ensur- 
ing happiness  here,  leads  to  happiness  hereaf- 
ter. I  have  told  you  of  this  earth — how  it  swings 
like  a  mighty  ball  in  the  air — how  its  surface 
is  figured  over  with  seas  and  continents  and 
islands  ;  and  how  different  nations  dwell  upon 
it.  I  have  told  you  the  story  of  the  great  hu- 
man family  ;  and  I  have  not  failed  occasion- 
ally to  direct  your  thoughts  to  that  good  and 
great  Being  who  rules  over  all  things. 

But  it  appeared  to  me  that  I  had  failed  to 
make  religion  sufficiently  the  subject  of  my 
addresses  to  you  ;  and  I  was  anxious  to  sup- 
ply this  omission.  I  was  the  more  anxious, 
from  the  apprehension  that  such  topics  are 
thought  to  be  dull,  tedious  and  uninteresting, 
by  most  young  people.  I  was  solicitous  to 
make  an  effort  to  remove  an  error  which  ap- 
pears to  me  so  great  and  so  mischievous.  There 
is  no  subject  so  full  of  interest,  even  for  young 
persons,  as  religion,  if  they  will  sit  down  and 
study  it  aright.  It  is  like  a  never-failing  spring, 
bubbling  up  every  moment  with  bright,  refresh- 
ing and  beautiful  ideas.  Those  who  refuse  to 
-drink  at  this  heaven-fed  fountain  must  slake 


324 


FAREWELL. 


their  thirst  at  the  disturbed  and  muddy  streams 
of  earth — streams,  which,  imperfect  as  they  are, 
often  vanish  at  our  utmost  need,  by  some  un- 
seen subterraneous  channel,  or  sink  into  the 
fathomless  bosom  of  a  quicksand. 

Farewell. 

Peter  Parley. 


A 


,-<p' 


-  . 


